Crisis Point

Seeing a crisis as an opportunity to believe more firmly in Jesus

04/21/2018

John 6:60-69 Many of the disciples of Jesus who were listening said, "This saying is hard; who can accept it?" Since Jesus knew that his disciples were murmuring about this, he said to them, "Does this shock you? What if you were to see the Son of Man ascending to where he was before? It is the Spirit that gives life, while the flesh is of no avail. The words I have spoken to you are Spirit and life. But there are some of you who do not believe." Jesus knew from the beginning the ones who would not believe and the one who would betray him. And he said, "For this reason I have told you that no one can come to me unless it is granted him by my Father." As a result of this, many of his disciples returned to their former way of life and no longer walked with him. Jesus then said to the Twelve, "Do you also want to leave?" Simon Peter answered him, "Master, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life. We have come to believe and are convinced that you are the Holy One of God."

Are you familiar with the etymology (the roots) of the word “crisis”? Now, most people think of a crisis as a bad thing, like a political crisis, or a midlife crisis, or the financial crisis of 2008. That is the modern connotation of the word. However, that was not its original meaning. Crisis comes from Greek and means “the turning point, for better or worse, of a disease.” Think of a fever that leaves you miserable and moaning in your bed praying for relief. The moment at which the fever breaks and you feel human again is the crisis point in that illness. In this sense – the original sense – a crisis can be a good thing. It is a turning point and decision point full of the hope of healing.

Jesus seems to be especially adept at pushing people to crisis points in the gospel, and John chapter six stands out as a supreme example. Jesus has just presented the people with perhaps his most controversial teaching. He declares that only those who eat his Body and drink his Blood will live forever. This teaching flew in the face of traditional Jewish belief about consuming blood, which was absolutely forbidden. Leviticus 7:26 strictly said: “You shall not eat any blood.” So it comes as no surprise that the devout Jews who were following Jesus said in the gospel: “This saying is hard, who can accept it?” And a few verses later we read: “As a result of this, many of his disciples returned to their former way of life and no longer walked with him.” But not all of them made that choice. Simon Peter makes a bold profession of faith: “Master, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life.” Jesus sees all humanity as suffering from a serious spiritual fever and he wants that fever to break, to reach a crisis point. Sometimes the patient is healed (like the apostles), but sometimes the patient relapses (like the Jews who refused to believe). Apparently, Jesus seems convinced the cure of a crisis is worth the risk of relapse.

Try to bear in mind the original meaning of crisis whenever a serious crisis befalls you. That is, try to recognize that we all suffer from an acute illness, a fever, we are all spiritually sick. Robust physical health does not necessarily indicate a spiritually sound soul. Spiritual sickness is our normal condition when we are born. Theologically, we call that illness “original sin.” Even though original sin is washed away in baptism, the effects of sin remain, our tendency to sin. So, Jesus, the divine Physician, wants that spiritual fever to break and allows crises to occur in our life – a failed marriage, an illness like cancer, a lost job, the death of a loved one, a financial reversal, a broken friendship, an unplanned pregnancy, etc. We pray to God to succor us in our suffering, or we blame God for causing the crisis. We cry: “Just make the pain go away!” But do not forget the original – and truer – meaning of crisis: a turning point in an acute illness. This crisis point forces us to make a decision, and hopefully brings spiritual healing, as we decide to believe more firmly in Jesus.

Scott Hahn often observes: “God loves us just the way we are, but he loves us too much to let us stay that way.” Why doesn’t God just leave us alone? Well, because God, the divine Doctor, loves us too much to let us stay sick, so he brings our spiritual fever to the breaking point, a crisis. And offers us the hope of healing.

Praised be Jesus Christ!