How Can I Say "I'm Sorry" - Luke 9:37-43

Parallel Passages:
Matthew 17:14-21
Mark 9:14-29

I do not know about you but I can definitely relate to certain aspects of today's passage. No not regarding healing a demon afflicted deaf/mute boy but rather disappointing someone that was really important to me. I am sure we all have fallen short with our friends, our families, or with our Christ. It hurts because no matter "why" you failed them - you still failed them.

Today's passage requires reading all three accounts in order to get the entire picture of the scene. Our passage begins with Jesus coming down from the mountain after the transfiguration. Peter, James, and John are with Him and they come down to a mess. The Mark account says this: "When they came to the other disciples, they saw a large crowd around them and the teachers of the law arguing with them. As soon as all the people saw Jesus, they were overwhelmed with wonder and ran to greet him." What a scene! We learn that the disciples, in Jesus's absence, were faced with a healing that they could not perform. The scribes and Pharisees had taken the opportunity to challenge the disciples and the One that sent them. Can you imagine how disappointing this was to Jesus. It reminds me of when Moses came down from the mountain with the ten commandments and found God's chosen people worshiping the golden idol. Could the disciples or the chosen people not be left alone for just a few days without failing their Master?

As He returns, Jesus's asks what is going on and is told of the situation. Hear the pain, or imagine His body language as he says: "O unbelieving and perverse generation," Jesus replied, "how long shall I stay with you and put up with you?" While I think that was directed to all the crowd, the scribes, the disciples, and the father of the boy, I still wonder how the disciples felt when they heard those words.

I remember at York College I was the captain of the soccer team, a resident assistant, and I held other positions within the school that propped me up for others to see. I will never forget playing a game that was scheduled on a weekend where hundreds of alumni, the board of directors, and dozens of other prominent members of York's staff were on campus. The soccer game was one of the "highlighted" activities attended by nearly all of them. During the game I tried to lead the team and told several players on numerous occasions to stop complaining about the referee. In fact I went off on my teammates at halftime for blaming the referee for our poor play. After the halftime speech I took the field and made a play that the referee from his vantage point (some 40+ plus yard away - which for you non-soccer referee types means that he was WAY out of position) thought that I had committed a foul. Needless to say I was done defending the referee and unleashed a phrase directed at him that my girlfriend (now wife) told me that I repeated seventeen times. I did not curse but the phrase has the same meaning as "You stink!", and I screamed it at the referee as I sprinted the 40+ yards to continue the tirade in his face. I was thrown out and it was witnessed by anybody and everybody that had anything to do with York College. The next day at worship, the preacher finished his normal lesson and gave an invitation. After the invitation, the preacher retook the pulpit and said that he had a few more words that he felt obligated to bring to us. He said that he had attended a soccer game the day before and what he witnessed was inexcusable and a poor reflection of the Christian principles that we should be exhibiting in our lives.... Five minutes later after he went into great detail about what he saw and how horrible it was, Lorey and I crawled out from under our pew, knowing that every eye in the building was staring straight at me. The preacher, as did many others, exhibited and expressed disappointment in me and I felt pain over the incident - much more pain than my red card or my next game suspension could ever inflict.

We will continue this passage tomorrow but how can we make up for our transgressions? When we let someone down - how can we make the hurt go away? Do you find it interesting that we get to see Jesus expressing Himself in this way? Why?

I realize that we all disappoint the ones that we love at one time or another. The cool thing about this passage is that Jesus's response was not I am through with you all. It was more like - I am here for you now but what about when I am gone; will you be faithful to Me or will you fail Me; and, then Jesus healed the boy, settling all questions and divisions created by the disciples failure.

I know there are many lessons in this passage for my life. Tomorrow we will discuss why the disciples could not heal the boy and examine the word's of the boy's father.