Road Trip Jesus
(Luke 5: 27-31)
Teresa and I love a good road trip, and we have taken many over our fifty plus years together. We know our planned destination and much of the driving is on the interstate highways that crisscross the country. But we get bored traveling on the freeway and at every chance we get off and take an unplanned scenic route just to break the monotony. The folks on the freeway have their cruise controls set and only get off to eat breakfast at Denny’s, lunch at Cracker Barrell, and supper at the Black Bear Diner where the menus never change and the décor is the same. Our favorite side trips are when we are on I-40 and get off on Old Route 66 to explore the towns that time is passing by. Staying in one of those Tee-Pee Motor Courts is on my bucket list. You really do meet some interesting people who don’t mind chatting with some tourists who took the time to get off the freeway and support their business. If you stop, look, and listen you’ll see people differently when you engage them on their terms. And, because I am chatty, I enjoy hearing their stories, even the tragic ones. And you know what? Jesus enjoyed a good road trip and loved meeting people even if it meant he had to stop what he was doing and give some of his time to hear their stories and show them some love.
So, if Jesus took a road trip in 21st century America what would he see and who would he meet? Indulge me if you will as I imagine how his journey would take shape. Our modern-day Jesus is 30 years old and still living with his parents in the Bronx where he helps out with Joseph’s contracting business. One day he goes to Mary and Joseph and tells them that there has to be more to life than doing renovation jobs and that he has the itch to hit the road and see the country. Mary and Joseph know their boy is special and destined to do something great, so they give him their blessings and a little money for the road. Jesus goes down to Honest Abraham’s Used Autos and a 1964 metallic mint green Buick Skylark convertible catches his eye, so he buys it, throws his to-go bag in the backseat and heads south with the wind blowing in his hair and his AM radio playing some top 40 tunes.
After a few days he finds himself on the back roads of Mississippi when he comes upon a tent revival and observes a preacher waist deep in a river proclaiming: “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is near.” Intrigued, Jesus gets out to take a closer look and finds himself standing in line with those wanting to be baptized. As he got closer to the baptizer it was the guy ahead of him turn to be baptized and when the guy came up out of the water he exclaimed: “Come on in boys, the water’s fine. All my sins have been washed away!” When Jesus went under the water and came back up, he felt a strange and wonderful feeling come upon him experiencing a peace and joy he had never experienced. Full of the Spirit, Jesus continued on his journey with a sense of purpose and wonderment. While driving along the Gulf Coast of Alabama Jesus stopped in the fishing village of Bayou La Batre and spotted four shrimpers repairing their nets and chatted them up asking them how the shrimping was going. They said it was okay but awfully hard work. Jesus told them that if they would put down their nets and follow him, he would make them fishers of men. Figuring it couldn’t be any harder or dangerous than fishing in the gulf and dodging hurricanes Simon, Andrew, James, and John hopped in the Buick and off they went as Jesus recounted his baptism experience and what he was feeling.
With no planned destination they just went where the road took them and soon found themselves in Buck Snort Tennessee where they stopped for gas at a mom-and-pop convenience store and bait shop. As Jesus was deciding on his choice of jerky to wash down with an ice-cold Mountain Dew he spotted a young man, obviously blind, sitting in a corner shelling a bushel of peas. He asked the lady at the counter about the young man, and she stated he was her son and had been born blind. Jesus asked her if she knew why and she just responded that she figured it was her punishment for the life she had led before meeting the boy’s dad and getting married. Jesus looked at her and said it was neither her fault nor the boy’s. He explained that we live in an imperfect world, full of imperfect people, and sometimes our bodies fail us, but God loves us just the same. With that, he went over to the boy, laid his hands upon him and asked God to restore his sight. The mother was overjoyed and all the people in Buck Snort who knew the boy were amazed at this miracle.
They then made their way back down into Louisiana and hit I-10 going west. After they crossed the 24-mile-long Lake Pontchartrain Causeway they crossed into Texas greeted by the road sign that told them they were 23 miles from Beaumont and 857 miles to El Paso. On day two of their trip through Texas they stopped in Van Horn for lunch at Chuy’s Mexican Restaurant. Their waitress was a middle-aged woman who was bent over and could barely stand up. Jesus asked her how long she had been in this shape, and she told him for about 18 years and could offer no explanation for her condition other than blaming it on the devil. Jesus took pity on her and with a word and a prayer he set her free from her infirmity. Some folks eating at a nearby table who had just come from Sunday service chastised Jesus for working on the Sabbath. Jesus quietly asked them that if they got home this afternoon and found their donkey had no water to drink would they not fill the trough? Not getting a response, Jesus asked what harm then was done by relieving this woman’s pain?
Back on I-10 they headed west towards El Paso. As they were passing through Jesus looked to his left over the Rio Grande River and saw the poverty of Cuidad Juarez and thought to himself: “Blessed are the poor for theirs is the kingdom of God.” About that time, the air conditioner on the Buick gave out so they stopped in Fort Stockton at an automotive repair shop to see if it could be fixed. Jesus spotted a guy sitting on the tailgate of his truck in a Whataburger parking lot eating a burger. Jesus saw that the sign on the truck said it was a Pecos County Tax Assessor-Collector truck, so he went over to chat the guy up. The guy said his name was Manuel, Manny for short, and seemed friendly enough so Jesus asked if he and his friends could come over to his house for an evening meal. Manny agreed and by the time they arrived Manny had called a bunch of his friends who had gathered for a cookout. Manny threw some fajita meat on the grill, and they all sat around enjoying some ice-cold Lone Star beer. It was quite a gathering with some rough looking tattooed biker types, women with multi-colored hair, roofers and sheet rockers, and other sketchy looking individuals all gathered together for a good time and dancing to conjunto music. It wasn’t long before a couple of Fort Stockton police cars responded to a noise complaint and Simon went out to greet them. After explaining to the officers who they were and the purpose of their road trip they asked Simon why their so-called spiritual leader associated with such lowlifes. Jesus noticed the exchange, so he went over to check it out. When the officer asked Jesus about his associating with this crowd Jesus responded that it was not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick, and that he had come to call the sinners, not the righteous. Yeah, right responded the officer who then suggested that Jesus and his buddies be on their way because they didn’t need their kind getting the riff raff all stirred up. They thanked Manny for his hospitality and Jesus asked where all the roofers went. Manny explained that when the authorities show up the roofers and other day laborers get a little nervous and make themselves scarce because they are illegals. Jesus responded: “Manny, no human is illegal in God’s kingdom.
They continued on their way and eventually ended up in Monument Valley, Utah where they stopped at a little roadside gift shop run by a Navajo woman. Jesus told them to go find the nearest town and that he’d stay put in the shade while they booked a couple of rooms. It was pretty hot, so Jesus went inside and asked the woman behind the counter for a drink of water. She was a little put off by the request and said: “How can you, a white man, ask me, a Navajo, for a drink of water after all of what your people did to my people?” “A fair question” Jesus responded, “and I am very sorry for the suffering of your people.” He continued: “We are all God’s beloved children, meant to live in harmony.” “I ask you for water that will quench my thirst now, but I also offer you a living water that if you drink it, you will never thirst again.” Intrigued by this mysterious white man she asked where she could get this water. Jesus told her to call her husband which she sheepishly said she had no husband. “That’s correct,” Jesus said, “you’ve had five husbands and the man you are with now is not your husband.” Embarrassed, the woman looked down at the floor. Jesus assured her it was okay because she had faith and that one day all would worship together in faith whether they called him God the Father or the Great Spirit. She told all the people in town, and they all came out to hear Jesus speak and were amazed at his words.
After spending the night, they decided to head north and after a couple of days ended up in Seattle. Simon said he wanted to go to Pike Place Market and see the flying fish, Andrew wanted to go to the original Starbucks, James wanted to visit the Jimi Hendrix exhibit, and John wanted to see the gum wall. Jesus laughed, called them tourists, and said he was going to check out a place called Pioneer Square. When he got there, he was shocked at what he saw with all the homeless people, tents, cardboard boxes, trash, empty wine bottles, and discarded syringes. He approached a man in a wheelchair that was holding a sign that said: Homeless veteran, anything helps, God bless. Jesus dropped some change in his cup and asked the man for his story. The man introduced himself as Dan and said he came from a long line of military men with his great grandfather serving in the American Expeditionary Force under General Pershing, his grandfather landing at Normandy on D-Day, his uncle being one of the Chosin Frozen, his dad a tunnel rat in Vietnam, and he serving in Afghanistan where he became paralyzed from the waist down in an IED explosion that threw him from his Humvee. He told Jesus that he had no one to help him and it was hard for him to get to the VA for assistance and, besides, their funding was being cut, so what’s the use? Taking pity on him, Jesus laid his hands upon his legs and told him to get up out of his chair and walk. Shakily, Dan got up out of his chair and took a few steps much to the amazement of those who were watching from the shadows. Jesus blessed him, thanked him for his service, wished him well and headed back towards Pike Place Market.
After reunited with his traveling companions, Jesus said it was time to head east so they hit I-90 and crossed over the pass. After you cross the Idaho panhandle it’s a pretty good distance between towns. It was getting pretty late, and the fishers of men were all sleeping soundly in the Buick, so Jesus decided to stop at an all-night café in Flaming Gorge, Wyoming for a cup of coffee. The place was pretty empty with a couple of kids sleeping in one the booths, a grizzled looking cook with a cigarette dangling from his lips, and a very tired looking waitress behind the counter. Jesus was looking for some conversation, so he began regaling Dottie with stories of his road trip when all of a sudden, she reached out and touched the sleeve of his denim jacket. “Why did you do that?” he asked. She said: “I’ve heard of you; there was a story on the tv about five guys driving around the country in an old Buick and one of them was performing miracles.” She told Jesus that she too needed a miracle, that she had been sick for over twelve years with an embarrassing woman’s problem. None of the doctors could figure out what was wrong, she had spent all she had, it was getting worse, and she was losing her health benefits and there were rumors about the closing of their rural hospital. She blushed with embarrassment when she told Jesus that maybe if she could just touch the hem of his jacket she would be cured. Jesus looked her in the eyes, took her hand and said: “Take heart, your faith has healed you.” With that, Jesus got five cups of coffee to go on the house and continued on towards his date with destiny.
Hopefully, you’ve recognized these stories with a modern twist, as some of the ones recorded in the four gospels of our New Testament. Stories recorded for our benefit as examples of the love and compassion of Jesus Christ. Stories meant to impress upon us the importance of getting off the freeway and taking the scenic route where we can encounter people where they are, hear their stories, and share with them the healing love of Jesus Christ who sees them, loves them, and is calling them to him and a relationship with God the Father. Jesus wants us to learn by his example and to be his disciples for the transformation of the world. He wants us to take it on the road.
Let us pray.
Gracious and loving God, as we travel through life move us to take our lives off cruise control, to get off the freeway and take the scenic route as there is so much to see and so many of your children to meet. As we travel along our Christian path may we take the time to meet people where they are, to listen to their stories, and share with them what your Son, our Savior, Jesus Christ, has done in our lives, the healings and the new life we have gained through faith. Present to us those opportunities to share your Word. This we pray, in Jesus’ name, Amen
Road Trip Jesus
Jesus wants us to learn by his example and to be his disciples for the transformation of the world. He wants us to take it on the road.