Genesis 3:8-15; Psalm 130; II Corinthians 4:13-5:1; Mark 3:20-35
The Rev. Candice B. Frazer
Most people have a story or have seen a video of an entitled traveler. Just recently a video of a woman in first class went viral when she insisted she had paid for both seats and would not allow a fellow passenger to sit next to her in the seat he claimed to have paid for. After several minutes of her indignation and verbal abuse of the man, the flight attendant informed her that she had not paid for these two seats, was not supposed to be in first class, and moved her to the back of the plane.
My favorite story, told for the truth, is the one about the gate agent who in response to the angry, aggressive man that pushed his way to the desk in front of a long line of passengers and demanded to be on a particular flight and it had to be first class, replied that she was sorry for the inconvenience, happy to help him, and she would do so after she had helped those who were in line ahead of him. To wit, the man asked loudly, “Do you have any idea who I am?” Without hesitation, the gate agent smiled, grabbed the microphone and proceeded to address the entire terminal, asking politely if there was anyone in the terminal who could identify the passenger as he did not know who he was. A public service announcement met with much laughter on the part of everyone other than, I am sure, the man in question.
The entitled traveler story, though offensive, is also often rather humorous especially as it points to a truth about ourselves we would rather overlook. We might not ever say the words, “Do you know who I am,” but they have become such a pervasive part of our culture they have their own text initials—DYKWIA. Blog posts and travel boards are full of these DYKWIA stories. And they don’t just happen at airports. The whole “Karen” phenomenon points to this entitlement sensibility we walk around with in everyday life.
Karen memes are an internet phenomenon—the blond woman, jabbing her finger at something, and screaming whatever entitlement phrase of the day or situation that comes to mind. The memes are often divided in half—Karen on the one side and an orange tabby cat on the other side calling Karen out with a rational and calm demeanor. Or just the memes of cats who talk back to Karen—just Google “Karen Cat Memes” and I promise you will laugh all afternoon.
This sense of entitlement has become a cultural norm. In large part because we no longer live each day from a place of responsibility but by what we believe our rights to be. We have gotten to a point where we declare we have a right to something regardless of what the consequences for others might be. We decide what is best for ourselves without much concern for anyone else, much less society at large, focusing on our rights rather than our responsibilities to one another. When we catch ourselves thinking we are owed something because we have worked hard or achieved it in some way, it might be an opportunity for us to step back and consider what is motivating us to act in a particular situation—do we think we have the right to that thing or are we more concerned with our responsibilities to our fellow human beings? Leading life from the stance that we have the right to something will, more often than not, get us into trouble and it may well lead to negative outcomes and the deterioration of relationships.
Adam and Eve live in the Garden. In the evening, God comes and walks with them. He is building a relationship. God has told them everything in the Garden is for them to eat from, except the tree in the middle of the Garden. The serpent tells Eve that the tree is not bad and that by eating from it she would be like God and know everything. Eve decides she has a right to eat the fruit of the tree and convinces Adam to do the same. Their focus Is not on their responsibility to God or the relationship they have been creating with God, instead they focus on their personal rights. By focusing on their rights instead of relationship, they make a choice that will soon drive them from their garden home and lead them into conflict, antagonism, and suffering.
I’m not sure if the serpent’s motivations were to befriend Adam and Eve or try to trick them out of the garden—but where they were on speaking terms before the incident and now they are at war with one another all because they decide they have the right to do what they want. Their relationship with God suffers. God will no longer walk with them in the garden, but banishes them instead, setting guards at the gates so they can never return. Though God does not love them any less, the relationship has deteriorated.
When we live according to what we believe we have a right too—and I am not speaking simply to legal rights, but those rights we assume we have or even take for granted—then we are making ourselves the center of the world, not others, and certainly not God.
Jesus asks, “Who do you think are my mother and brothers?” Then he looks at everyone seated around him and says, “Here are my mother and my brothers! Whoever does the will of God is my brother and sister and mother.” Jesus is reminding us that we are all a part of God’s family and as such, we have a responsibility to one another to live in a manner that builds up one another through faithful obedience to God. Being a Jesus follower is not about what you have the right to do or say—perceived or not. It’s not about being entitled or that your expectations regarding how others should treat you or what you should get out of this world are met. Being a Jesus follower is about releasing your rights. It is about releasing your expectations of the world—at work, at home, at school, in the grocery store, on an airplane, even at church—and instead opening to and embracing the possibilities of God simply by living as a responsible citizen of the kingdom. To live as Christ followers is to focus on the responsibilities we have to one another in the building up of each other, not the tearing down; and certainly not in the judging of one another.
If we are each others sisters and brothers, then we have a responsibility to one another, our rights don’t matter—not simply focus on our own desires. We are to lift up the others needs, wants, and desires before our own. Our baptism reminds us of that. This morning, we will baptize Lillian Rickels and we will make a claim upon her that she is a member of the household of God and marked as Christ’s own forever. We will promise to do all we can to bring her up in God—not just her parents and godparents—but all of us. When we make that promise and she becomes a member of the household of God—then we have declared ourselves her brothers and sisters. That means we now bear responsibility to her—just as we have a responsibility to all God’s children.
We cannot travel this world putting our own needs or expectations first because we believe we have a right to something and then wonder why the world seems so dark and broken. As Christians we cannot be entitled travelers, but instead we must embrace our responsibilities as brothers and sisters and mothers to all whom we meet. We must live from that place of responsibility not because our rights guarantee us anything in particular but because as Jesus followers, we choose to give up those rights and live into the responsibilities that he has called us too. To love as members of the household of God.