Isaiah 44:6-8
Remember Looney Tunes cartoons?
Remember Wiley Coyote and Road Runner?
For the benefit of the younger folks, Wiley Coyote was always in pursuit of the Road Runner, never to actually catch him. The Road Runner never really outwitted the coyote, and he never came across as particularly savvy; the coyote was just constantly a victim of his own hubris. He always assumed he was more capable than he actually was at catching the Road Runner, and inevitably in every episode something would go wrong, and prove the coyote to be...well...human.
There is this one scene that comes quickly to mind. He thinks he has finally trapped the long-legged bird, when the scene zooms out to show that he is standing on the edge of a cliff, and then the rock beneath his feet crumbles and he falls into the ravine...as he so often does.
Isn't that the way life is, sometimes?
We think we're pursuing our goals and then the ground beneath our feet falls away.
Recently, my wife told me that I was her rock.
Has anyone ever said that to you? It's humbling.
I'm proud of the fact that I am able to offer some measure of strength and consistent support for her. The Lord knows how much I depend on her as a source of support and encouragement.
I hope that in similar ways I am somewhat of a rock for my son, my family and my parents. I want them to know that I will be there for them as a secure source of hope, guidance, and support.
But, the truth is, I'm not a rock.
I'm as vulnerable as the coyote on the cliff.
In my 14 years of experience I've done many funerals and weddings. At them, I've heard countless people declare their devotion to another with words similar to that of "so and so has been my rock"
I've heard speeches from cancer survivors thanking their immediate caregivers with these same sentiments.
I've listened to people describe their road to recovery from addictions or sinful habits as that of being unable to have done such a thing without so and so being a rock in their lives.
Still, I'm willing to bet that each of these "rocks" know the same humbling truth that I speak about today.
This is the truth that our Scripture reminds us today...
None of us are actually the "rocks" our loved ones think we are.
It's no secret, really. We are all as vulnerable as the coyote on the cliff.
Yet, there still exists the need for someone to be that unmoving object in our life--that rock of faith, endurance, security. We all need someone to give us a place to stand that we can depend on; someone to support us when no one else does; someone to love us when no one else will.
From the prophet Isaiah, God declares to us that He will be our rock.
God asks for our trust in him above all other things we might trust in.
God tells us, "There is no other rock."
Noting else we can stand on that wont erode, or fall apart.
God is our rock--an unmoving, unchanging, unwavering solid ground upon which we can stand strong and remain faithful.
And, through the gospel, God shows us that His rocky, unmoving strength for us comes through the gift of Jesus' loves for us.
The way Jesus loves us...willing to die for us...willing to suffer for our benefit...paradoxically, this is our strength, our security. With faith in God's love for us beneath our feet, we are strengthened and supported through life.
If I am able to be any kind of rock for my wife, my son, my siblings, my parents...I know deep down where the truth lies within me...that it is not because of a strength or security that I come up with on my own. It is because of God's love for me, because the love of Christ is in my heart and soul, and therefore it is beneath my feet.
If I am able to be any kind of rock for anyone, it is because God is my rock.
I believe this is the truth for all of us.
When we use that expression, describing someone as our rock, we are pointing to God working in and through our lives.
We may know that we are incapable of truly being a "rock" for those around us. But, we have a God, who is our rock. With faith the ground beneath us may give away, and still we are upheld with hope.
With God supporting us, providing us with secure and solid ground we find within our love for one another a kind of strength that defies our weakness and vulnerabilities. It is a kind of strength that isn't ours, but a strength that is most profoundly noticed when we are willing to give it to others in spite of our weaknesses.
With God as our rock, we have a model of godly love. We have Christ. With Christ we are strengthened to be strong for others. With Christ, we can be like him, we can be like the rock for others.
The following is a video of one Father whose love for his son is an example of God's love for us. It refuses to quit or give way beneath his son. The father's love stands as solid as a rock for his son.
Just as this father's love is a rock for his son, our Heavenly Father's love is a rock for us. It empowers us to stand strong for those we love.
Today, consider the people who have been been or who are your rocks.
Thank them.
How can you be a rock for others?
Amen.
