I once read an interesting article about worry. In it, the author basically suggested that 90% of the things we worry about are meaningless – that 90% of the things we worry about are either never going to happen and so we don’t need to worry about them or are inevitably going to happen and so worrying about doesn’t make one bit of difference. Either way, it seems that a lot of people spend a lot of their lives worrying about things that they really don’t need to worry about. Christians need to keep in mind the words of Jesus: “Who among you by worrying can add even a single hour to your lives?” And, of course, the real issue is that not only does worrying not add hours to our lives, the stress created by worrying probably takes hours off our lives. Setting aside the effect worry might have on our lifespans, we also need to keep in mind the impact that worrying has on our quality of life. If you worry about too many things you won’t be able to enjoy very many things. It seems clear to me at least that Jesus didn’t want His disciples to be worry-warts! He wanted us to be able to enjoy the lives that God has given us. Sometimes, it’s true, our worries are productive. If I’m a student and I have an exam coming up, my worries about the exam might lead me to study more seriously. But a lot of worries aren’t positive. For example, if I get too worried about being hit by a car, I’m liable to just lock myself up in my house where being hit by a car isn’t very likely – but having any real form of relationship with others isn’t very likely either. I don’t deny that worries and fears are a natural part of life, but if they take us over too completely they detract from our life.

 

     In today’s passage from John’s Gospel, we’re dealing with the problem of small things being taken much too seriously, and the impact that can have. The focus of the passage is on the rather intricate relationship between three people: Jesus, Peter and John. Jesus, the Lord and Saviour who asks His disciples to follow Him; Peter, whom Jesus referred to as the rock on which the church would be built; and John, who is described as the disciple who was loved by Jesus above all the others. Within this intricate relationship we can see three problems that arise from the problem of taking small things far too seriously and spending far too much time worrying about them. Those three problems are jealousy, paralysis and gossip. All three of these things are present in this passage and all three result from people worrying about a small and relatively unimportant thing. 

 

     Today’s passage follows immediately from last week’s passage. Jesus and Peter have just finished their exchange about love, and now we read that “Peter turned and saw that the disciple whom Jesus loved was following them. (This was the one who had leaned back against Jesus at the supper and had said, “Lord, who is  going to betray You?”) When Peter saw him, he asked, “Lord, what about him?” I may be reading too much into this, but that sounds to me like jealousy. Peter was the rock, the head of the church, the first among the disciples. Perhaps he thought that the exchange between himself and Jesus was a private conversation, but when he turned around he saw John right there. Perhaps he was embarrassed that John had heard Jesus rebuking him for his insufficient love; perhaps he was simply jealous that he wasn’t able to have the time alone with Jesus that he believed himself entitled to as the leader of the group. His question to Jesus strikes me as somewhat harsh (I personally don’t imagine it as a gentle question): “Lord, what about him?” Maybe it could be paraphrased as “what’s he doing here?” or “why is he always hanging around?” In response, Jesus says: “If I want him to remain alive until I return, what is that to you?” To paraphrase what Jesus said, “Peter, it’s none of your business if I want to have John around!” The strikes a chord with me, and a lot of Christians would do well to learn the lesson: focus on the things that are really relevant to you and don’t worry so much about what everyone else is doing. Jealousy rears its ugly head when we start to think that someone else is getting to do something that we’d rather be doing ourselves. Jesus wants us to understand that within the community of faith the role we play or the place we hold is the sovereign choice of God. So Jesus’ first lesson to Peter was “mind your own business.” Take care of what you’re called to take care of, and let others do the same and don`t worry about whose work seems more important or significant. That’s pretty good advice. 

 

     Jesus continued, of course. After saying “If I want him to remain alive until I return, what is that to you?” He added the words, “You must follow Me.” Last week, when we saw Jesus use those identical words in the preceding passage, I suggested that they had a deeper meaning than “be My disciple.” In our context today, I don’t think they do. I think that here Jesus is saying very seriously “do what I tell you to do.” You see, the second problem that arises from worry is paralysis. We get so stricken by worries over small things that we find ourselves unable to do anything meaningful – like the hypothetical person I spoke of who locks herself inside her house just to make sure that she doesn’t get hit by a car. That person will accomplish the goal of not being hit by a car, but they’ll accomplish it at the expense of at best a less than fully productive life, and at worst (and more likely) a miserable life. In the spiritual realm, we can get so caught up debating philosophical concepts that it`s easy to forget to put the gospel into practice in material ways. In the middle ages there really were serious theological debates and arguments and divisions over how many angels could dance on the head of a pin! I`m not sure why the people of that era thought that mattered, but I wonder how much time was wasted debating something of no importance at the expense of doing the important work of Jesus. In today`s passage, Jesus is telling Peter to focus on the task at hand; on what’s really significant; on what’s really going to accomplish something for the Kingdom of God, and not to worry about unimportant and ultimately meaningless things. If Peter continues to be consumed by his jealousy over the relationship between Jesus and John, then Peter will accomplish nothing as Jesus’ disciple. If we today allow ourselves to be consumed by essentially unimportant worries, we’ll accomplish nothing as Jesus’ disciples. 

 

     The last part of the problem created by worrying is shared with us directly by John. Jesus said that “If I want him to remain alive until I return, what is that to you?” As John explained, the gossip mill must then have twisted Jesus’ words a bit, and “the rumour spread among the brothers that this disciple would not die.” “Rumour” is perhaps a kinder, gentler way of referring to gossip. That’s the third problem that excessive worrying leads to. We think something important or unusual might be happening, and we`re worried that we`re not a part of it, so we feel the need to talk about it – even though we really don’t have a clue what we’re talking about. Then we become so caught up in what we’re talking about that, as the stories build, people can be hurt and lives can be ruined and the gospel gets tarnished. It’s likely that those who heard this particular rumour were getting overly anxious thinking about Jesus’ return as John got older and clearly approached the end of his life, and to show how all this fits together, what does this kind of gossip lead to: paralysis. People spend all their time talking about things and none of their time doing anything. John knew that whether he lived or died wasn’t important; what was important was that before and after his death the disciples of Jesus would continue his work of proclaiming Jesus to the world. How much time was wasted spreading rumours while the work of the gospel waited to be done? Gossip comes from worrying – worrying about what someone else may or may not be up to.

 

     I often tell people: “Don’t sweat the small stuff!” because I figure that if you’re going to sweat the small stuff, what in the world are you going to do when the big stuff hits?! And yet, still, so many people “sweat the small stuff.” They need to be involved in everything; they need to be concerned with everything; they get upset over the minor details of the Christian life, they make their own lives and the lives of those around them miserable and they forget that what really matters is proclaiming Jesus and living for Jesus. So let’s not sweat the small stuff. Let’s just remember and celebrate that we have a living and loving and wonderful Lord to share with the world by our words and by our deeds.