Third Sunday of Lent—Ball Joints and Tie-rods

The earliest name for Christians was The People of the Way: the way that Jesus leads, the way to the cross. We have lost that name as our primary identifier, but we are still God’s people on the way. Luther’s Theology of the Cross speaks of this way.

This theology insists that we look at the world as it is, not as we might want it to be. It calls us to name the evil around us in order to confront it. It calls us to pay attention to the signs of trouble and deal with them. It calls us to take charge of our lives and do something about them.

During high school, many of my friends drove around in less than ideal vehicles, vehicles that needed attention. There were some things, however, that almost everyone checked out before the purchase.

Being blind, I never had to worry about it for myself, but I rode in many of those beaters. Looking at a $15.00 car one afternoon, a friend said, “Grab the tire on your side and pull on it.”

I pulled on it and felt it move and knock slightly.

“Do it again when I tell you,” he said. On his order I pulled the tire; again, there was this knock and wobble. This time the front of the car seemed to dip.

Afterwards, my friend crawled under the car and pulled on different parts of the drive-train. After some time, he crawled out and said to the owner, “I’ll give ten, but fifteen is too much.” After being called a thief and a robber, my friend agreed to a final price of $12.00.

“So, what was the wheel pulling about,” I asked?

He replied, “I wanted to know how sloppy the ball joints were.”

“What do the ball joints do?”

“They help to keep the car on the road,” he said.

“So, how were they?” I asked.

“They’re worn, but the tie rods are in good condition; so, I should be in good shape. I just won’t buy good tires for it until I replace the ball joints or sell it to someone else. Until then, I just won’t drive much over thirty. It shimmies around forty, but I just need it to get me to school and back home; so, it should be okay.”

At Baptism we are put on the road of faith and all looks good. We are truly aligned, and our joints are strong. Yet, oftentimes we find that there is a little shimmy in our lives as we grow older, but, if the tie rod is strong, we are able to continue on the way. It is Christ that continues to hold us in relationship with God and one another. By the grace of Christ, we receive the healing gift that rejuvenates the strength of our joints, aligns our lives, and gives wholeness pointing us on the way in which we need to go.