Genesis 1:1-2, 26-27 p1
When God began creating the heavens and the earth,2the earth was a formless void and darkness covered the face of the deep, while a wind from God swept over the face of the waters. 26 Then God said “Let us make humankind in our image, according to our likeness; and let them have stewardship of the fish in the sea, and of the birds of the air, and over the cattle, and over all the wild animals of the earth, and over every creeping thing upon the earth. So God created humankind in his image, in the image of God, God created them; male and female God created them.
Matthew 28:16-20 p 812
16Now the eleven disciples went to Galilee, to the mountain to which Jesus had directed them.17When they saw Jesus, they worshiped him; but some doubted.18And Jesus came and said to them, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me.19Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit,20and teaching them to obey everything that I have commanded you. And remember, I am with you always, to the end of the age.”
This day, in the church calendar, is called Trinity Sunday. It is the only day in the church year that celebrates a doctrine, a theological idea or theorem. And, one I suppose, that many of us care little about. Today will come and go- and we will still have bills to pay, and sick children to take care of, and a spouse we worry about. Our loved ones will serve overseas, our physical pain will continue, the grass will still need to be mowed, the laundry need to be done. The doctrine of the Trinity—or any doctrine, for that matter, seems at best far away, something academicians talk about in ivory towers, but having very little to do with our every day lives.
And yet—and yet—the doctrine of the Trinity, the notion of a God so large, so awe inspiring, so overwhelming that one description of God is not enough, that mere language is not enough—is a notion of comfort, a way to explain- just a little- the mystery of overflowing love.
But what IS useful for us is the idea that God IS community- and that God, in God’s own self, demonstrates how to be community. And the community we are talking about is, of course, the church.
In Genesis, in the beginning--- God. When God began creating, God breathes and speaks, sees and creates. And God speaks in plural: “Let us make God in our image” God says. And this is a part of our understanding of Trinity- that God is plural, even before we have language to think about it, talk about it. At the beginning, even before the beginning, God is already community. This God of community and mystery is a relational God who loves, and in loving, chooses to create, redeem, and sustain creation, regardless of the ability of different parts of creation to respond in particular ways.
And this God loves us, and loves creation: “it is good”, God says. And this passage uses the name for God, Elohim – a plural form—in three different ways: in verse 1, Elohim is creating- out of nothing! In verse 2, the wind, or spirit or breath of Elohim is hovering, and in verse 4, Elohim is seeing and naming- that creation is good.
James Weldon Johnson was an African American poet, author and hymn writer. He wrote “Lift every voice and Sing”, which is in our hymn book. He also wrote a poem called The Creation, which begins “And God stepped out on space. Then he looked around and said—I’m lonely—I’ll make me a world.”
Now, I do not doubt Mr. Johnson’s talent or his place in history. But I disagree with him here. It is not loneliness which causes God to create—it is pure, overflowing love—the same way that the waters spill out of the pitcher and font and land on the floor every Sunday, the same way that light spills from the skies and illuminates everything in its path, the same way that having another child doesn’t mean you have less love, it just means there is more love to go around—God, the Triune God, the already community God, had so much love that God just had to share—with creation and with us.
If you have been in the Lodi historical society building, the old Lodi Methodist church, perhaps you have noticed a small stained glass window. The window is triangular in shape, in which a smaller, rounded off triangle is depicted in stained glass- and the three points of the triangle are the Latin words for Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. In the middle of the triangle is the word Deus- God. Linking each of the points of the triangle are the words, in Latin, for “is not” the Father is not the Son, the Son is not the Holy Spirit, etc- but all three persons are linked, like spokes on a bicycle wheel, in the middle to the word God. And all of those links have the word “is”- the Son IS God, the Holy Spirit IS God, the Father IS God. And while this is technically correct, doctrinally correct, it seems to me like a math theorem.
There are many ways, many images for God as Trinity: Water: overflowing font, living water, flowing river. Rock, Cornerstone and Temple. St Augustine used a living tree: the root is wood, the branch is wood, the trunk is wood- all are wood, all are different, all are inextricably linked in a mutual life.
But I like the image of a dancing God best.
One of the images for the Trinity is the idea of a circle dance-perichoresis, the same word that we get choreography from. And in that image, God in Three persons is dancing—intertwined, arms linked, feet moving joyously in a dance of freedom and love. When our boys were little, and Jim would finally get home from long hours at work, and a long commute on the Thruway, the boys would say jump around and yell “family hug, family hug!” And Jim and I would hug, and then boost the boys up on our arms—my image if the Trinity is something like that—that we are all linked together.
The Gospel of Matthew ends with the words of Jesus. The portion we heard this morning is called the Great Commission. And I don’t think that there were many hugs on that mountaintop that morning—maybe just grabbing onto each other in fear. This is the first time the disciples have seen Jesus, since they abandoned him, since they fled during his arrest. There are only 11 disciples mentioned, so the community has already experienced trauma and betrayal and death—and resurrection. The disciples are still shell shocked. The women had come running from the tomb, that Easter morning, and told the men what they had been told: go to Galilee, because Jesus will meet you there…the whole community, went to Galilee- about 70 or 80 miles…to wait for Jesus. What will he say to them? How much shame are they bearing, having to see Jesus again, face to face? And when the disciples see Jesus, they worship…but some doubt….literally, they are of two minds—and Jesus appears to them.
This I think, if one of the best descriptions of the church I have ever seen, the community of faith, made up of disparate people, some of whom have heard the words of the resurrected Jesus, some of whom have heard the other’s description of that event, all of whom are on a journey—of two minds- worshipping and doubting at the same time, marked by grief and death—and receiving the gracious words of Jesus, words of power and resurrection and of comfort.
Jesus is not shaming them, Jesus is not reproaching them. Jesus is giving them work to do. Jesus is giving them their marching orders- Go- Go and make disciples, baptizing and teaching. And remember, I am with you—always. Immanuel- God with us.
And as the community of faith, we can look to that moment, that God on the mountaintop, and see what kind of community the Triune God calls us to be:
We have work to do
God calls us to that work, whether we are screw-ups, or have failures in our life, for surely we do, or whether we doubt or worship or are of two minds, or any of the above- God calls us.
We are to do so without recriminations, without backbiting, with love- because that is what Jesus commands: we are to go and teach others , baptizing, making disciples of every nation, teach them to obey everything that I have commanded you- and what is that command? Love. Mutual love, upbuilding love, respectful love- the love that the Trinity, God in God’s own self, displays. Love that does not override someone else, but love in which all participants are joined- as in a circle dance—and separate and distinct, equal and equally loving, in relationship with each other and with God.
“We cannot speak of this God without recognizing that Trinity is not an optional “extra” to God, but is the very nature of God as revealed to us in Scripture. To lose the vocabulary of the Trinity is to miss out on a full understanding of who God is,” Charles Wiley writes.
Rodger Nishioka, this past week, at Montreat Youth Conference, said to over 1600 youth- “You cannot be a Christian by yourself”. We need each other. In the same way that the Three-ness of God is essential to who God is, the community-ness of the church is essential to who the church is. I have heard many times since we’ve moved up here- “you don’t have to go to church to be a Christian” and I agree, going to church does not make you a Christian, as they say, anymore than being in the garage makes you a car. But I can’t imagine how one could be a Christian without a community—because I find the work of being a Christian so hard, that I need others who are on the journey with me.
The Trinitarian God points to the relational nature of our lives. God in three persons is a relational idea- the three persons of the Trinity relate to each other in divine love. Each person of the Trinity has a distinct identity and yet all are connected and linked. Surely this means that just as love characterizes the eternal Trinity, so love should characterize our lives as a community of faith as well.
May we be shelter for each other, as we go out, making disciples, baptizing, teaching. May we reflect the Triune God in our common life together. May we be community, in the way God is community. In the name of the Trinity: Father, Son and Holy Spirit. Amen.
Tuesday, June 28, 2011
Tuesday, May 24, 2011
Plenty Good Room
Psalm 31 p 439
In you, O LORD, I seek refuge; do not let me ever be put to shame; in your righteousness deliver me.
Incline your ear to me; rescue me speedily. Be a rock of refuge for me, a strong fortress to save me.
You are indeed my rock and my fortress; for your name’s sake lead me and guide me,
take me out of the net that is hidden for me, for you are my refuge.
Into your hand I commit my spirit; you have redeemed me, O LORD, faithful God.
My times are in your hand; deliver me from the hand of my enemies and persecutors.
Let your face shine upon your servant; save me in your steadfast love.
This is the word of the Lord: Thanks be to God
We’ve all done it, I think- or at least been on the receiving end –that speech, those final words, that try to imbue all the information and wisdom we want to give someone- when we’re leaving the kids for the first time alone—“don’t burn down the place, don’t let anybody in the house, here’s 5$ if you need milk from the store…” or when the children go away: “don’t drive too fast, wear your seat belt, call when you get there…” or even when we are undergoing something unknown, a biopsy or medical procedure, the nurse makes sure to walk us through: “you’ll feel a pinch, and begin to feel a little sleepy, and then the dr will come in, and the next thing you know, you’ll wake up in the recovery room. You’ll be fine.” This morning’s text from John is just that: Part of Jesus’ final words to the disciples: Listen now, for the word of the Lord
John 14:1-14 p 877
14“Do not let your hearts be troubled. Believe in God, believe also in me. 2In my Father’s house there are many dwelling places. If it were not so, would I have told you that I go to prepare a place for you? 3And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and will take you to myself, so that where I am, there you may be also.
4And you know the way to the place where I am going.” 5Thomas said to him, “Lord, we do not know where you are going. How can we know the way?” 6Jesus said to him, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me. 7If you know me, you will know my Father also. From now on you do know him and have seen him.” 8Philip said to him, “Lord, show us the Father, and we will be satisfied.” 9Jesus said to him, “Have I been with you all this time, Philip, and you still do not know me? Whoever has seen me has seen the Father. How can you say, ‘Show us the Father’? 10Do you not believe that I am in the Father and the Father is in me? The words that I say to you I do not speak on my own; but the Father who dwells in me does his works. 11Believe me that I am in the Father and the Father is in me; but if you do not, then believe me because of the works themselves.
12Very truly, I tell you, the one who believes in me will also do the works that I do and, in fact, will do greater works than these, because I am going to the Father. 13I will do whatever you ask in my name, so that the Father may be glorified in the Son. 14If in my name you ask me for anything, I will do it.
This is the word of the Lord……Thanks be to God
We want to know—we want to be prepared. Jesus will soon go away, and he is trying to reassure the disciples, trying to prepare them. “Do not let your hearts be troubled…” Don’t worry, Jesus says. Really- it’ll be okay- why? Because I am going ahead of you, and I am going to prepare a place for you.
This passage is frequently used at funerals. In my Father’s house there are many rooms. If it were not so, would I have told you that I go to prepare a place for you?”
Trust me Jesus says. In fact the word used for believe- “believe in God, believe also in me” is really better rendered as “trust”- a trust built on a relationship.
The disciples have a relationship with Jesus. They have been with him for a while, now. This morning’s passage is set after Palm Sunday, after the foot washing, while the disciples are still sitting at the table, but after Jesus has told the disciples about his impending death. They are starting to get nervous-why is he talking like that? What can he possibly mean? What is this talk about going away?
Thomas- and here I want to call him Realistic Thomas rather than Doubting Thomas, asks a common sense question- “Lord, we do not know where you are going” Makes sense. Sensible Thomas wants a road map- where are you going, and how are we going to get there? Where Jesus is going is much less than a destination, and much more of a way of being, however. And Thomas’ words are actually- “we are not able to know where you are going”. It’s not a cognitive, fact based knowing- we are unable to know where you are going-
And Jesus has compassion for them- “I am the way” he tells them. You already know me, Jesus tells them, and in that relationship is all you need to know.
Robert Jenson says that “God is not known by us because he/GOD is amenable to the exercise of our cognitive powers. In a word made flesh, God…is disclosed in the self-giving, self-emptying love that is God’s Son.
Many scholars think the Gospel of John has post-resurrection statements interpolated into the text. That means that the faithful community went back and put in after-Easter, post-death and post-resurrection words into the gospel text. So that Jesus, in saying to his followers, “If I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and will take you to myself-“ is the Jesus who has already died, and been resurrected, has already defeated death and sin, has already been raised to glory- and has, indeed, come again to take them to himself.
And where does he appear? In the midst of them, the faithful community. The word “you” in this morning’s text is always plural- you, the disciples, the “all ya’ll” you, the whole church you- not just to one of us, but to all of us, together.
Because did you hear what Jesus had to say? “In my Father’s house are many rooms….” There’s an African-American gospel song, Plenty Good Room. There is a wideness in God’s mercy, another hymn says, like the wideness of the sea. Plenty good room, says the song, plenty good room in my Father’s kingdom. We are called to have that largeness of heart, we are called to make sure there is indeed plenty good room in the kingdom.
If this message to the early church, and to us, is that in God’s house there are lots of rooms, then there must be room for all kinds of people. And there are all kinds of jokes about this: that a Presbyterian dies, and goes to heaven, and is taken on a tour by St Peter—and they pass one room, and there’s all kinds of music and singing: “Oh, those are the Baptists” says St Peter, and they pass another room, and they can hear through the door chanting and smell incense “Oh, those are the Episcopalians” says St Peter. And they go down the hall, and they pass a room, and St Peter motions for the Presbyterian to be silent. “Shh…those are the (fill in the blank denomination here) they think they’re the only ones who got in”.
So what are we to do in this roomy, capacious kingdom? Many point to this text as the text that shows just how wide God’s mercy and grace are, and point to it as a way for us to respond, with grace, to people of other faiths. If God has room in his mansion, if Jesus comes and calls other sheep that are not of this sheepfold, then how are we to think and live?
Shirley Guthrie, Presbyterian pastor and teacher, says this: If we look at non-Christians in light of God’s plan, we are permitted and required to believe that God is for them too- that God loves them, that God desires their salvation, too, that God works in their lives and in the world around them. It is not their unbelief and disobedience but the will and work of God in Jesus Christ that tells us what God’s attitude toward them is and will be. How can we Christians take non-Christians unbelief more seriously than we take what God has told us God plans and wills for them?
Rob Bell recently published a book called Love Wins. Rob Bell is a huge, huge big deal in the Emergent and Evangelical church. He is the founding pastor of Mars Hill Church in Grand Rapids, Michigan, a mega-mega church, by many people’s measure the mother ship of mega-churches, the epitome of success of what it means to be a Christian and a church. And in his book, Love Wins, Rob Bell writes that the church was doing a series of teachings on peacemaking, and having an art show, in which artists were to reflect on what it means to be a peacemaker. One of the artists chose to include a quote from Mahatma Gandhi in her work. A number of people found that quite compelling. But not everyone—someone attached a sticky note to the picture that said “Reality check: He’s in hell”.
And among Bell’s questions are: really? We have confirmation of this? Somebody knows this without a doubt?
Rob Bell is saying the same thing John Calvin and the early Westminster Confessions say: “We are to have a good hope for all”. We have that good hope because we rest in the graciousness, the wideness of God’s mercy.
Other sheep I have, that are not of this sheepfold. In my Father’s House there are many rooms, says Jesus.
But we also have Jesus’ words from this same passage- “I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father but by me.”
Karl Barth, easily one of the most famous theologians of the 20th Century, was lecturing once to a group of students at Princeton University. One student asked him a question that has probably crossed your minds: "Sir", said the student, "don't you think that God has revealed himself in other religions and not only in
Christianity?" Barth's answer stunned the crowd. With a modest thunder he answered, "No, God has not revealed himself in any religion, including Christianity. He has revealed himself in his Son."
I am the way, Jesus said. The early Christians were not labeled “Christians”: they were called “People of the Way”. And what do we do, as people of the way? What do we do on our journey? Is heaven just a destination? Some of you may have heard that yesterday, May 21, was judgment day, according to Harold Camping. We understand that Jesus will come again—but that no one knows the hour, not the angels in heaven, not even the Son, only the Father. But we do rest in this relationship, this trust- Jesus says he has gone on ahead to prepare a place for us—and we trust him. So, as people relying on this trust, this relationship, living out this relationship, how do we live? Do we live out the Kingdom of God, right now, right here? The church is by definition the community of those who live by God’s forgiveness for guilty people. …It is the place where people can risk putting aside their defenses and masks, knowing that they will be accepted just as they are.
The truth is this: following Jesus means that we need one another in community, and that our life together is for the healing of the world. So what if this life we have in Jesus is as simple as sharing our lives and faith and serving people in our families, circle of friends, co-workers, and community.
Our life as Christians is this: the work we are called to is to help one another follow Jesus into the lives of people who are hungry and thirsty for life that is real and lasting. We offer others the same grace and love that has healed and changed our lives. Maybe, just maybe, this is how healing comes into a very broken world. And this is how Jesus intends for the Kingdom to advance.
Maybe, just maybe, that is what the church is called to be: a roomy place, a spacious place, where the wideness of God’s mercy, where the plenty good room of God is lived out for all the world to see. Amen.
In you, O LORD, I seek refuge; do not let me ever be put to shame; in your righteousness deliver me.
Incline your ear to me; rescue me speedily. Be a rock of refuge for me, a strong fortress to save me.
You are indeed my rock and my fortress; for your name’s sake lead me and guide me,
take me out of the net that is hidden for me, for you are my refuge.
Into your hand I commit my spirit; you have redeemed me, O LORD, faithful God.
My times are in your hand; deliver me from the hand of my enemies and persecutors.
Let your face shine upon your servant; save me in your steadfast love.
This is the word of the Lord: Thanks be to God
We’ve all done it, I think- or at least been on the receiving end –that speech, those final words, that try to imbue all the information and wisdom we want to give someone- when we’re leaving the kids for the first time alone—“don’t burn down the place, don’t let anybody in the house, here’s 5$ if you need milk from the store…” or when the children go away: “don’t drive too fast, wear your seat belt, call when you get there…” or even when we are undergoing something unknown, a biopsy or medical procedure, the nurse makes sure to walk us through: “you’ll feel a pinch, and begin to feel a little sleepy, and then the dr will come in, and the next thing you know, you’ll wake up in the recovery room. You’ll be fine.” This morning’s text from John is just that: Part of Jesus’ final words to the disciples: Listen now, for the word of the Lord
John 14:1-14 p 877
14“Do not let your hearts be troubled. Believe in God, believe also in me. 2In my Father’s house there are many dwelling places. If it were not so, would I have told you that I go to prepare a place for you? 3And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and will take you to myself, so that where I am, there you may be also.
4And you know the way to the place where I am going.” 5Thomas said to him, “Lord, we do not know where you are going. How can we know the way?” 6Jesus said to him, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me. 7If you know me, you will know my Father also. From now on you do know him and have seen him.” 8Philip said to him, “Lord, show us the Father, and we will be satisfied.” 9Jesus said to him, “Have I been with you all this time, Philip, and you still do not know me? Whoever has seen me has seen the Father. How can you say, ‘Show us the Father’? 10Do you not believe that I am in the Father and the Father is in me? The words that I say to you I do not speak on my own; but the Father who dwells in me does his works. 11Believe me that I am in the Father and the Father is in me; but if you do not, then believe me because of the works themselves.
12Very truly, I tell you, the one who believes in me will also do the works that I do and, in fact, will do greater works than these, because I am going to the Father. 13I will do whatever you ask in my name, so that the Father may be glorified in the Son. 14If in my name you ask me for anything, I will do it.
This is the word of the Lord……Thanks be to God
We want to know—we want to be prepared. Jesus will soon go away, and he is trying to reassure the disciples, trying to prepare them. “Do not let your hearts be troubled…” Don’t worry, Jesus says. Really- it’ll be okay- why? Because I am going ahead of you, and I am going to prepare a place for you.
This passage is frequently used at funerals. In my Father’s house there are many rooms. If it were not so, would I have told you that I go to prepare a place for you?”
Trust me Jesus says. In fact the word used for believe- “believe in God, believe also in me” is really better rendered as “trust”- a trust built on a relationship.
The disciples have a relationship with Jesus. They have been with him for a while, now. This morning’s passage is set after Palm Sunday, after the foot washing, while the disciples are still sitting at the table, but after Jesus has told the disciples about his impending death. They are starting to get nervous-why is he talking like that? What can he possibly mean? What is this talk about going away?
Thomas- and here I want to call him Realistic Thomas rather than Doubting Thomas, asks a common sense question- “Lord, we do not know where you are going” Makes sense. Sensible Thomas wants a road map- where are you going, and how are we going to get there? Where Jesus is going is much less than a destination, and much more of a way of being, however. And Thomas’ words are actually- “we are not able to know where you are going”. It’s not a cognitive, fact based knowing- we are unable to know where you are going-
And Jesus has compassion for them- “I am the way” he tells them. You already know me, Jesus tells them, and in that relationship is all you need to know.
Robert Jenson says that “God is not known by us because he/GOD is amenable to the exercise of our cognitive powers. In a word made flesh, God…is disclosed in the self-giving, self-emptying love that is God’s Son.
Many scholars think the Gospel of John has post-resurrection statements interpolated into the text. That means that the faithful community went back and put in after-Easter, post-death and post-resurrection words into the gospel text. So that Jesus, in saying to his followers, “If I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and will take you to myself-“ is the Jesus who has already died, and been resurrected, has already defeated death and sin, has already been raised to glory- and has, indeed, come again to take them to himself.
And where does he appear? In the midst of them, the faithful community. The word “you” in this morning’s text is always plural- you, the disciples, the “all ya’ll” you, the whole church you- not just to one of us, but to all of us, together.
Because did you hear what Jesus had to say? “In my Father’s house are many rooms….” There’s an African-American gospel song, Plenty Good Room. There is a wideness in God’s mercy, another hymn says, like the wideness of the sea. Plenty good room, says the song, plenty good room in my Father’s kingdom. We are called to have that largeness of heart, we are called to make sure there is indeed plenty good room in the kingdom.
If this message to the early church, and to us, is that in God’s house there are lots of rooms, then there must be room for all kinds of people. And there are all kinds of jokes about this: that a Presbyterian dies, and goes to heaven, and is taken on a tour by St Peter—and they pass one room, and there’s all kinds of music and singing: “Oh, those are the Baptists” says St Peter, and they pass another room, and they can hear through the door chanting and smell incense “Oh, those are the Episcopalians” says St Peter. And they go down the hall, and they pass a room, and St Peter motions for the Presbyterian to be silent. “Shh…those are the (fill in the blank denomination here) they think they’re the only ones who got in”.
So what are we to do in this roomy, capacious kingdom? Many point to this text as the text that shows just how wide God’s mercy and grace are, and point to it as a way for us to respond, with grace, to people of other faiths. If God has room in his mansion, if Jesus comes and calls other sheep that are not of this sheepfold, then how are we to think and live?
Shirley Guthrie, Presbyterian pastor and teacher, says this: If we look at non-Christians in light of God’s plan, we are permitted and required to believe that God is for them too- that God loves them, that God desires their salvation, too, that God works in their lives and in the world around them. It is not their unbelief and disobedience but the will and work of God in Jesus Christ that tells us what God’s attitude toward them is and will be. How can we Christians take non-Christians unbelief more seriously than we take what God has told us God plans and wills for them?
Rob Bell recently published a book called Love Wins. Rob Bell is a huge, huge big deal in the Emergent and Evangelical church. He is the founding pastor of Mars Hill Church in Grand Rapids, Michigan, a mega-mega church, by many people’s measure the mother ship of mega-churches, the epitome of success of what it means to be a Christian and a church. And in his book, Love Wins, Rob Bell writes that the church was doing a series of teachings on peacemaking, and having an art show, in which artists were to reflect on what it means to be a peacemaker. One of the artists chose to include a quote from Mahatma Gandhi in her work. A number of people found that quite compelling. But not everyone—someone attached a sticky note to the picture that said “Reality check: He’s in hell”.
And among Bell’s questions are: really? We have confirmation of this? Somebody knows this without a doubt?
Rob Bell is saying the same thing John Calvin and the early Westminster Confessions say: “We are to have a good hope for all”. We have that good hope because we rest in the graciousness, the wideness of God’s mercy.
Other sheep I have, that are not of this sheepfold. In my Father’s House there are many rooms, says Jesus.
But we also have Jesus’ words from this same passage- “I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father but by me.”
Karl Barth, easily one of the most famous theologians of the 20th Century, was lecturing once to a group of students at Princeton University. One student asked him a question that has probably crossed your minds: "Sir", said the student, "don't you think that God has revealed himself in other religions and not only in
Christianity?" Barth's answer stunned the crowd. With a modest thunder he answered, "No, God has not revealed himself in any religion, including Christianity. He has revealed himself in his Son."
I am the way, Jesus said. The early Christians were not labeled “Christians”: they were called “People of the Way”. And what do we do, as people of the way? What do we do on our journey? Is heaven just a destination? Some of you may have heard that yesterday, May 21, was judgment day, according to Harold Camping. We understand that Jesus will come again—but that no one knows the hour, not the angels in heaven, not even the Son, only the Father. But we do rest in this relationship, this trust- Jesus says he has gone on ahead to prepare a place for us—and we trust him. So, as people relying on this trust, this relationship, living out this relationship, how do we live? Do we live out the Kingdom of God, right now, right here? The church is by definition the community of those who live by God’s forgiveness for guilty people. …It is the place where people can risk putting aside their defenses and masks, knowing that they will be accepted just as they are.
The truth is this: following Jesus means that we need one another in community, and that our life together is for the healing of the world. So what if this life we have in Jesus is as simple as sharing our lives and faith and serving people in our families, circle of friends, co-workers, and community.
Our life as Christians is this: the work we are called to is to help one another follow Jesus into the lives of people who are hungry and thirsty for life that is real and lasting. We offer others the same grace and love that has healed and changed our lives. Maybe, just maybe, this is how healing comes into a very broken world. And this is how Jesus intends for the Kingdom to advance.
Maybe, just maybe, that is what the church is called to be: a roomy place, a spacious place, where the wideness of God’s mercy, where the plenty good room of God is lived out for all the world to see. Amen.
Sunday, May 15, 2011
I Am the Gate
1 Peter 2:1-10 p. 984
Rid yourselves, therefore, of all malice, and all guile, insincerity, envy, and all slander. 2Like newborn infants, long for the pure, spiritual milk, so that by it you may grow into salvation— 3if indeed you have tasted that the Lord is good.
4Come to him, a living stone, though rejected by mortals yet chosen and precious in God’s sight, and 5like living stones, let yourselves be built into a spiritual house, to be a holy priesthood, to offer spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ. 6For it stands in scripture: “See, I am laying in Zion a stone, a cornerstone chosen and precious; and whoever believes in him will not be put to shame.” 7To you then who believe, he is precious; but for those who do not believe, “The stone that the builders rejected has become the very head of the corner,” 8and “A stone that makes them stumble, and a rock that makes them fall.” They stumble because they disobey the word, as they were destined to do. 9But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, God’s own people, in order that you may proclaim the mighty acts of him who called you out of darkness into his marvelous light. 10Once you were not a people, but now you are God’s people; once you had not received mercy, but now you have received mercy.
John 10: 1-16 p. 872
“Very truly, I tell you, anyone who does not enter the sheepfold by the gate but climbs in by another way is a thief and a bandit. 2The one who enters by the gate is the shepherd of the sheep. 3The gatekeeper opens the gate for him, and the sheep hear his voice. He calls his own sheep by name and leads them out. 4When he has brought out all his own, he goes ahead of them, and the sheep follow him because they know his voice. 5They will not follow a stranger, but they will run from him because they do not know the voice of strangers.” 6Jesus used this figure of speech with them, but they did not understand what he was saying to them. 7So again Jesus said to them, “Very truly, I tell you, I am the gate for the sheep. 8All who came before me are thieves and bandits; but the sheep did not listen to them. 9I am the gate. Whoever enters by me will be saved, and will come in and go out and find pasture. 10The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy. I came that they may have life, and have it abundantly. 11“I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep. 12The hired hand, who is not the shepherd and does not own the sheep, sees the wolf coming and leaves the sheep and runs away—and the wolf snatches them and scatters them. 13The hired hand runs away because a hired hand does not care for the sheep. 14I am the good shepherd. I know my own and my own know me, 15just as the Father knows me and I know the Father. And I lay down my life for the sheep. 16I have other sheep that do not belong to this fold. I must bring them also, and they will listen to my voice. So there will be one flock, one shepherd.
In the Gospel of John, there are many “I AM” statements by Jesus. Jesus says “I am the bread of life”, “I am the living water”, “I am the light of the world”. All of them are statements that are life giving and life affirming, and all of them use ordinary objects drawn from everyday life, to begin to enter into the mystery that is Immanuel- God with us.
One of the most familiar I AM statements is Jesus saying “I am the Good Shepherd”. We have stained glass windows, artwork, hymns, that reflect this image. Those of us who know real-life shepherds (like Andy & Mary, or Anne & John Knight) see that this makes sense, and is a beautiful illustration of God’s love for us. We see from those human shepherds what care, what diligence a shepherd takes: out in all weather, making sure the fields contain nutritious grass and water, making sure the sheep are safe, that the lambs and mothers are alright, that there are no predators menacing the flock.
After talking about being a shepherd, Jesus uses another image: “Very truly, I tell you- I am the gate for the sheep,” however, inspires no art work, no stained glass windows, no hymns. It is not, at first, a really compelling image. It is hard even to imagine that. When Jim and I recently traveled in China, we experienced lots of gates: going through customs and immigration, in lines at gardens and at tourist attractions, even going through security at the Metro. There were a lot of gates, and all of them were designed to control, to restrict, people and the flow of traffic.
So the image of Jesus as a gate might seem strange, even unpleasant to us. It may help, though, to know that in Jesus’ day shepherds sometimes actually, physically were gates for the sheep. Out in the fields, a shepherd would make an enclosure—or rocks, or of brush and briars, and then, at night, would gather the sheep into the enclosure. The shepherd would lay down in the small opening, keeping the sheep in, and the predators out—literally becoming the gate for the sheep.
But if we are talking about Jesus as the gate, then what is the sheepfold? The sheepfold, historically, has been thought of as the church—a place of safety and refuge, a place of togetherness. The sheep, cared for by the shepherd, were safe from predators, and would be healthy and thrive.
One of the ways to begin to understand this text is to understand that in the Gospel of John, there is nearly always first a sign, a miracle, and then a discourse, an explanation. In this morning’s text that Jesus performed, is way back in John 9- we heard it in Lent- the story of the man born blind. If you remember, the man was cured of his blindness by Jesus, and then the man and his family were quizzed by the Pharisees, and then the man was cast out of the synagogue. This text, about Jesus as the gate- or, in Greek, door- is about a way for those early Christians, cast out of the synagogue, kicked out of their families, to find a home, to find safety, to find abundant life in Jesus.
But, if there is a door, or a gate, then there is also a fence, right? The way that we think about gates is that they are the opening in the fence. And Jesus tells the Pharisees, and the early church this: “Whoever enters by me will be saved, and will come in and go out and find pasture.” So the gate both lets in, and lets out. The gate both opens and closes, protects and sets free.
The church, the sheepfold, for many centuries, did something I find, if not abhorrent, then at least objectionable. It has to do with fencing and gates: it is commonly known as “fencing the table”. And it began, as most things do, with good intentions. Calvin, in Geneva, wanted to have the sacrament of the Lord’s Supper celebrated every Sunday. The problem, though, was that the elders were to examine all people before they came to partake of communion. Those elders had read 1 Corinthians, in which Paul writes to the church there, that “they eat and drink damnation unto themselves” if they do not take the Lord’s Supper in a worthy manner. By the way, Paul was talking about the rich people in the church in Corinth hogging all the food, before the poor working people and slaves could get off from work and come to church, which was held in the afternoon.
The elders took very, very seriously, that warning, and took very seriously their charge to care for the spiritual welfare of the church. All were to examine themselves, and the elders were to examine all members of the congregation. “How is it with your soul?” the elders would ask the members. Anyone continuing in “unrepented sin” would be excluded from the table—the table was “fenced”, for the good of the members. In some times and places, even up to the early 20th century, communion tokens were given to those declared worthy by the elders—and members presenting tokens on Sunday morning could join in communion. In other times and churches—and Jim and I grew up in one—the people were to “rightly examine themselves” in prayer the week before communion—there was an exhortation to self examination and confession that is still used today. Needless to say, this much examination and self examination took time—and communion was not celebrated weekly, as John Calvin had hoped.
The church has a different understanding now of eating at the Lord’s Table, and while we do exhort you all- us all- to confess and repent of any sin, we understand that Jesus the gate, opens to us the way of abundant life and righteousness. The door opens, and we go in and out, to find pasture.
But to go back to our metaphor, if Jesus is the gate, and the church has been seen as the sheepfold, I want to ask in what ways the church has been closing the gate? In what ways have we been fencing the table, fencing off access to Jesus, who brings abundant life? With our talk, in our gossip and our words? The writer of 1 Peter says this: “Rid yourselves, therefore, of all malice and all guile, insincerity, envy, and all slander.” Is it in our polity and life together? Or what we say after the meeting is over and we are in the parking lot?
Some of you may know, that this past year, the PCUSA has been voting, presbytery by presbytery, on changes to the Book of Order, and to the Book of Confessions, the two parts of our church’s constitution. Some of those changes are just boring, rearranging lines in the Book of Order that nobody really reads or cares about, you may think, and some of them are controversial.
Certainly the most controversial one is the one that deals with ordination standards: the wording proposed is “Standards for ordained service reflect the church’s desire to submit joyfully to the Lordship of Jesus Christ in all aspects of life (G-1.0000).” What is changed is any language about chastity in singleness and fidelity in marriage for those seeking to be ordained—words that are good in and of themselves, but were most often used to bar gays and lesbians from being ordained in the church. This past week, the 87th Presbytery voted yes on this amendment, meaning that two-thirds of the presbyteries in the PCUSA approved it, and it will become part of our Book of Order at the next General Assembly in 2012. I know there are some who welcome this change, and I know there are some who are opposed to it. But what I hope—no, what I pray for, is that we do not fence each other out. That we remain Christ’s church, one flock, one shepherd, listening to his voice calling us.
In a church wide letter to congregations everywhere, the General Assembly Staff- Cindy Bolbach, moderator, Gradye Parsons, Stated Clerk, and others, write this:
Reactions to this change will span a wide spectrum. Some will rejoice, while others will weep. Those who rejoice will see the change as an action, long in coming, that makes the PC(USA) an inclusive church that recognizes and receives the gifts for ministry of all those who feel called to ordained office. Those who weep will consider this change one that compromises biblical authority and acquiesces to present culture. The feelings on both sides run deep.
However, as Presbyterians, we believe that the only way we will find God’s will for the church is by seeking it together – worshiping, praying, thinking, and serving alongside one another. We are neighbors and colleagues, friends and family. Most importantly, we are all children of God, saved and taught by Jesus Christ, and filled with the Holy Spirit.
For here is an interesting thing: in the same discourse, in the same speech about being both gate and good shepherd, Jesus says this: “I have other sheep that do not belong to this fold. I must bring them in also, and they will listen to my voice.” “Other sheep I have, that are not of this sheepfold” is the old translation. If Jesus is the gate, bringing in other sheep, sheep we don’t know, sheep we don’t recognize, sheep we don’t like, sheep who are different from us, sheep that we actively disagree with, if Jesus is opening the way for them, then who are we to stand in their way, who are we to close the gate? The unity of the church on this issue rests in our one Lord Jesus Christ, and not in our agreement or unanimity. We are one because we are bound to each other in Jesus Christ. We belong to each other because Christ has called us, and we belong to him. There will be voices that, in decrying this change in our Book of Order, declare that the time has come to break fellowship with those with whom they cannot agree . Let us all listen to the voice of Jesus, and be one flock, with one shepherd. Amen.
Rid yourselves, therefore, of all malice, and all guile, insincerity, envy, and all slander. 2Like newborn infants, long for the pure, spiritual milk, so that by it you may grow into salvation— 3if indeed you have tasted that the Lord is good.
4Come to him, a living stone, though rejected by mortals yet chosen and precious in God’s sight, and 5like living stones, let yourselves be built into a spiritual house, to be a holy priesthood, to offer spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ. 6For it stands in scripture: “See, I am laying in Zion a stone, a cornerstone chosen and precious; and whoever believes in him will not be put to shame.” 7To you then who believe, he is precious; but for those who do not believe, “The stone that the builders rejected has become the very head of the corner,” 8and “A stone that makes them stumble, and a rock that makes them fall.” They stumble because they disobey the word, as they were destined to do. 9But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, God’s own people, in order that you may proclaim the mighty acts of him who called you out of darkness into his marvelous light. 10Once you were not a people, but now you are God’s people; once you had not received mercy, but now you have received mercy.
John 10: 1-16 p. 872
“Very truly, I tell you, anyone who does not enter the sheepfold by the gate but climbs in by another way is a thief and a bandit. 2The one who enters by the gate is the shepherd of the sheep. 3The gatekeeper opens the gate for him, and the sheep hear his voice. He calls his own sheep by name and leads them out. 4When he has brought out all his own, he goes ahead of them, and the sheep follow him because they know his voice. 5They will not follow a stranger, but they will run from him because they do not know the voice of strangers.” 6Jesus used this figure of speech with them, but they did not understand what he was saying to them. 7So again Jesus said to them, “Very truly, I tell you, I am the gate for the sheep. 8All who came before me are thieves and bandits; but the sheep did not listen to them. 9I am the gate. Whoever enters by me will be saved, and will come in and go out and find pasture. 10The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy. I came that they may have life, and have it abundantly. 11“I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep. 12The hired hand, who is not the shepherd and does not own the sheep, sees the wolf coming and leaves the sheep and runs away—and the wolf snatches them and scatters them. 13The hired hand runs away because a hired hand does not care for the sheep. 14I am the good shepherd. I know my own and my own know me, 15just as the Father knows me and I know the Father. And I lay down my life for the sheep. 16I have other sheep that do not belong to this fold. I must bring them also, and they will listen to my voice. So there will be one flock, one shepherd.
In the Gospel of John, there are many “I AM” statements by Jesus. Jesus says “I am the bread of life”, “I am the living water”, “I am the light of the world”. All of them are statements that are life giving and life affirming, and all of them use ordinary objects drawn from everyday life, to begin to enter into the mystery that is Immanuel- God with us.
One of the most familiar I AM statements is Jesus saying “I am the Good Shepherd”. We have stained glass windows, artwork, hymns, that reflect this image. Those of us who know real-life shepherds (like Andy & Mary, or Anne & John Knight) see that this makes sense, and is a beautiful illustration of God’s love for us. We see from those human shepherds what care, what diligence a shepherd takes: out in all weather, making sure the fields contain nutritious grass and water, making sure the sheep are safe, that the lambs and mothers are alright, that there are no predators menacing the flock.
After talking about being a shepherd, Jesus uses another image: “Very truly, I tell you- I am the gate for the sheep,” however, inspires no art work, no stained glass windows, no hymns. It is not, at first, a really compelling image. It is hard even to imagine that. When Jim and I recently traveled in China, we experienced lots of gates: going through customs and immigration, in lines at gardens and at tourist attractions, even going through security at the Metro. There were a lot of gates, and all of them were designed to control, to restrict, people and the flow of traffic.
So the image of Jesus as a gate might seem strange, even unpleasant to us. It may help, though, to know that in Jesus’ day shepherds sometimes actually, physically were gates for the sheep. Out in the fields, a shepherd would make an enclosure—or rocks, or of brush and briars, and then, at night, would gather the sheep into the enclosure. The shepherd would lay down in the small opening, keeping the sheep in, and the predators out—literally becoming the gate for the sheep.
But if we are talking about Jesus as the gate, then what is the sheepfold? The sheepfold, historically, has been thought of as the church—a place of safety and refuge, a place of togetherness. The sheep, cared for by the shepherd, were safe from predators, and would be healthy and thrive.
One of the ways to begin to understand this text is to understand that in the Gospel of John, there is nearly always first a sign, a miracle, and then a discourse, an explanation. In this morning’s text that Jesus performed, is way back in John 9- we heard it in Lent- the story of the man born blind. If you remember, the man was cured of his blindness by Jesus, and then the man and his family were quizzed by the Pharisees, and then the man was cast out of the synagogue. This text, about Jesus as the gate- or, in Greek, door- is about a way for those early Christians, cast out of the synagogue, kicked out of their families, to find a home, to find safety, to find abundant life in Jesus.
But, if there is a door, or a gate, then there is also a fence, right? The way that we think about gates is that they are the opening in the fence. And Jesus tells the Pharisees, and the early church this: “Whoever enters by me will be saved, and will come in and go out and find pasture.” So the gate both lets in, and lets out. The gate both opens and closes, protects and sets free.
The church, the sheepfold, for many centuries, did something I find, if not abhorrent, then at least objectionable. It has to do with fencing and gates: it is commonly known as “fencing the table”. And it began, as most things do, with good intentions. Calvin, in Geneva, wanted to have the sacrament of the Lord’s Supper celebrated every Sunday. The problem, though, was that the elders were to examine all people before they came to partake of communion. Those elders had read 1 Corinthians, in which Paul writes to the church there, that “they eat and drink damnation unto themselves” if they do not take the Lord’s Supper in a worthy manner. By the way, Paul was talking about the rich people in the church in Corinth hogging all the food, before the poor working people and slaves could get off from work and come to church, which was held in the afternoon.
The elders took very, very seriously, that warning, and took very seriously their charge to care for the spiritual welfare of the church. All were to examine themselves, and the elders were to examine all members of the congregation. “How is it with your soul?” the elders would ask the members. Anyone continuing in “unrepented sin” would be excluded from the table—the table was “fenced”, for the good of the members. In some times and places, even up to the early 20th century, communion tokens were given to those declared worthy by the elders—and members presenting tokens on Sunday morning could join in communion. In other times and churches—and Jim and I grew up in one—the people were to “rightly examine themselves” in prayer the week before communion—there was an exhortation to self examination and confession that is still used today. Needless to say, this much examination and self examination took time—and communion was not celebrated weekly, as John Calvin had hoped.
The church has a different understanding now of eating at the Lord’s Table, and while we do exhort you all- us all- to confess and repent of any sin, we understand that Jesus the gate, opens to us the way of abundant life and righteousness. The door opens, and we go in and out, to find pasture.
But to go back to our metaphor, if Jesus is the gate, and the church has been seen as the sheepfold, I want to ask in what ways the church has been closing the gate? In what ways have we been fencing the table, fencing off access to Jesus, who brings abundant life? With our talk, in our gossip and our words? The writer of 1 Peter says this: “Rid yourselves, therefore, of all malice and all guile, insincerity, envy, and all slander.” Is it in our polity and life together? Or what we say after the meeting is over and we are in the parking lot?
Some of you may know, that this past year, the PCUSA has been voting, presbytery by presbytery, on changes to the Book of Order, and to the Book of Confessions, the two parts of our church’s constitution. Some of those changes are just boring, rearranging lines in the Book of Order that nobody really reads or cares about, you may think, and some of them are controversial.
Certainly the most controversial one is the one that deals with ordination standards: the wording proposed is “Standards for ordained service reflect the church’s desire to submit joyfully to the Lordship of Jesus Christ in all aspects of life (G-1.0000).” What is changed is any language about chastity in singleness and fidelity in marriage for those seeking to be ordained—words that are good in and of themselves, but were most often used to bar gays and lesbians from being ordained in the church. This past week, the 87th Presbytery voted yes on this amendment, meaning that two-thirds of the presbyteries in the PCUSA approved it, and it will become part of our Book of Order at the next General Assembly in 2012. I know there are some who welcome this change, and I know there are some who are opposed to it. But what I hope—no, what I pray for, is that we do not fence each other out. That we remain Christ’s church, one flock, one shepherd, listening to his voice calling us.
In a church wide letter to congregations everywhere, the General Assembly Staff- Cindy Bolbach, moderator, Gradye Parsons, Stated Clerk, and others, write this:
Reactions to this change will span a wide spectrum. Some will rejoice, while others will weep. Those who rejoice will see the change as an action, long in coming, that makes the PC(USA) an inclusive church that recognizes and receives the gifts for ministry of all those who feel called to ordained office. Those who weep will consider this change one that compromises biblical authority and acquiesces to present culture. The feelings on both sides run deep.
However, as Presbyterians, we believe that the only way we will find God’s will for the church is by seeking it together – worshiping, praying, thinking, and serving alongside one another. We are neighbors and colleagues, friends and family. Most importantly, we are all children of God, saved and taught by Jesus Christ, and filled with the Holy Spirit.
For here is an interesting thing: in the same discourse, in the same speech about being both gate and good shepherd, Jesus says this: “I have other sheep that do not belong to this fold. I must bring them in also, and they will listen to my voice.” “Other sheep I have, that are not of this sheepfold” is the old translation. If Jesus is the gate, bringing in other sheep, sheep we don’t know, sheep we don’t recognize, sheep we don’t like, sheep who are different from us, sheep that we actively disagree with, if Jesus is opening the way for them, then who are we to stand in their way, who are we to close the gate? The unity of the church on this issue rests in our one Lord Jesus Christ, and not in our agreement or unanimity. We are one because we are bound to each other in Jesus Christ. We belong to each other because Christ has called us, and we belong to him. There will be voices that, in decrying this change in our Book of Order, declare that the time has come to break fellowship with those with whom they cannot agree . Let us all listen to the voice of Jesus, and be one flock, with one shepherd. Amen.
Monday, March 28, 2011
Sermon March 27
Exodus 17:1-7 p56
From the wilderness of Sin the whole congregation of the Israelites journeyed by stages, as the LORD commanded. They camped at Rephidim, but there was no water for the people to drink. 2The people quarreled with Moses, and said, “Give us water to drink.” Moses said to them, “Why do you quarrel with me? Why do you test the LORD?” 3But the people thirsted there for water; and the people complained against Moses and said, “Why did you bring us out of Egypt, to kill us and our children and livestock with thirst?” 4So Moses cried out to the LORD, “What shall I do with this people? They are almost ready to stone me.” 5The LORD said to Moses, “Go on ahead of the people, and take some of the elders of Israel with you; take in your hand the staff with which you struck the Nile, and go. 6I will be standing there in front of you on the rock at Horeb. Strike the rock, and water will come out of it, so that the people may drink.” Moses did so, in the sight of the elders of Israel. 7He called the place Massah and Meribah, because the Israelites quarreled and tested the LORD, saying, “Is the LORD among us or not?”
Last week we saw and heard the story of Nicodemus. This week we hear the story of another person’s encounter with Jesus. They could not be more different: Nicodemus is a leader, a Pharisee, a powerful man, who comes to see Jesus in the middle of the night. The woman at the well is a nobody, we don’t even know her name; she is a Samaritan, hated by the Jews, and she is out at the well in the middle of the day. An unusual time to be out, getting water. In the Middle East, water is usually collected in the morning, and again just before sunset. Not in the bright light of mid- day. But that is when the woman is out, and it is where she meets Jesus.
Now, in the Bible, when a man and a woman meet at a well, the story usually resolves in a marriage. Isaac’s future wife, Rebekkah, was identified at a well. And this well is called Jacob’s well, because it is where Jacob met Rachel. But these two, will not be getting married. In fact, Jesus quizzes the woman about her marital status—or rather tells her about her whole history. She has had five husbands, and is living with another man now, who is not her husband. This story is often told this way: that of a woman, a sinful woman, who goes to the well at the middle of the day, because of her shameful past. And her past is full of shame—but not because of her sin. In that time and place, woman had no power, and could be divorced for something as heart rending as infertility, or as small as burning dinner. So this woman has been widowed, or divorced, or some combination of the two, and is now living with a man—it is thought to be a levirate marriage, in which she lives with her brother-in-law, who has refused to marry her. She has, it seems, no male relatives to speak up and protect her. She has no rights, she is helpless in this situation and society. She is an outsider on all sides. And this woman, a nobody, a non-person, is seen by Jesus. Really seen by him.
The text tells us that Jesus was traveling, and that “he had to go through Samaria”. He was traveling from Judea to Galilee- geographically, he did not have to go through Samaria in the north. Faithful Jews did whatever they could to avoid going through Samaria. Jesus had to go there to show God’s love.
And they begin a conversation. Here is the one place this encounter is like Nicodemus’. An ordinary conversation turns into something confusing, and words mean more than they appear to mean. There is talk about water—simple enough on the outside—they are at a well, after all—but then there is talk about “living water”-which can mean flowing water, or fresh water. In the Jewish tradition, the mikvah is the cleansing waters used for purification. And the rabbis still use the same term-“living water”—today. And while the waters of the mikvah are used for purification, they also are used to prepare people when they encounter God—Orthodox men go to the mikvah to wash, every morning, before going to temple for morning prayer.
And whether the woman was prepared or not, she encountered God at the well. Jesus told the woman “all that she had done”—and everything that had been done to her. She calls him a prophet, and begins what is a theological discussion with him. Note how this is different from Nicodemus: his only question was “How can this be?” The woman engages Jesus in God talk. And then, Jesus gives her a gift, for her questioning and her newly springing faith: Jesus reveals himself to her, as the Messiah: I AM, he says to her, the words God spoke out of the burning Bush, to Moses. He reveals himself to a loser, a rejected woman, an outsider—not even a Jew. She goes back to the town, and uses the same words Jesus spoke when he called the disciples to follow him—“Come and See”—and then asks: “He cannot be the Messiah, can he?” as if she cannot believe that this is what God is like, as if her life of hurt and disappointment have warned her not to hope. But as a pledge of her new life, her new identity, and her new faith, she leaves behind the water jug at the well. She knows that life will not be the same, now that she has had this encounter.
What is not at first glance apparent to us is how Jesus broke social and cultural boundaries to minister to this woman. In the Middle East, still, men do not speak to women they do not know—they don’t even make eye contact. Ken Bailey, Professor at Pittsburgh Seminary, who grew up and then taught in the Middle East for decades, said that he never, ever, passed that line. Orthodox rabbis do not even speak to their wives in public. It is not done. By social custom, Jesus, seeing her approach the well, should have withdrawn to a respectable distance away. And for a Jew to speak to a Samaritan- well, that might be an even bigger obstacle. The Samaritans were hated by the Jews, were thought to be half-breed traitors, who did not worship God correctly, who joined worship of Yahweh with worship of Greek and local gods. They were outside of the covenant, outside of God’s care.
Last week, we talked about how in John 3:16- for God so loved the world, and the word cosmos, which in the gospel of John is the God-hating world. God loves even the Samaritans, even a woman, even an outsider, enough to go out of his way to meet her. And look what she becomes: she is the first female preacher: She goes and tells. She gives her invitation: come and see- she gives her testimony, her experience- “a man who told me everything” and then she gives her confession: “He cannot be the Messiah, can he?” Now, granted……that may not sound like the most solid, affirmative confession of faith. But look at her pattern of growth: she moves from calling Jesus first “a Jew”, then “sir”, then a prophet (and remember, last week, Nicodemus called Jesus rabbi, teacher, putting Nicodemus and Jesus on the same level) to naming Jesus as the Messiah. And we are told that “many Samaritans believed in Jesus because of the women’s testimony”.
The Israelites, traveling through the desert, asked, Is the Lord among us, or not? They were thirsty, and tired, and out in the desert. Is the Lord among us, or not? It is the same question we ask whenever we are troubled, anxious, or grieving. Is the Lord among us, or not? We ask this as people of faith, and we ask this as a community of faith, as a church. After the woman’s testimony, calling people to come and meet the Lord, Jesus stayed with the Samaritans—enemies of the Jews—enemies of God, people who did not worship God rightly, who were outside the covenant. And Jesus, God, the Messiah, stayed there with them. Is the Lord among us, or not? God in Jesus was truly among the Samaritans. At the end of today’s passage, it is the Samaritans, those hated by the Jews, the enemies of God, who confess “we know that this truly is the Savior of the world.”
The world is thirsty. One of the amazing things about thirst is this: you are dehydrated a half hour before you even begin to feel thirsty. The same is true for our souls, our hearts, ourselves, as well, I think. We are dry inside, long before we know that we are thirsty. Jesus is the living water, water that overflows, water that brings eternal and new life.
There is a group called Living Waters of the World, which works in partnership with many Presbyteries of the national Presbyterian Church. They train and develop teams that not only bring clean water technology to needed areas, but also train and empower local people to maintain and develop clean water strategies onsite. On Palm Sunday, we will receive the One Great Hour of Sharing offering, part of which goes to Presbyterian Disaster Assistance—and we heard last week that monies from that fund have already been spent to provide clean, safe drinking water in Japan. Water is vitally important—we will die without it. We, who live so close to the lake, who simply turn on our taps, who hear the falls overflowing onto the roadway, who do not have to walk miles each way to scoop out dirty and contaminated water to bring back to our children—we are far removed from that well in Samaria, and from thirsty people all over the world. But we have been given the gift of living water in Jesus Christ, just like that woman at the well.
You know that Jim and I sometimes do “wondering questions” about the Scripture with the children. This is based on work by Sonya Stewart, who I had the privilege to study with. And Dr Stewart’s understanding is that when we come to Scripture, there are often no “right” answers- we all stand before the Word of God in awe and wonder—that the encounter with God is not something to be learned, and mastered, and then filed away, but is something we wonder about, over and over, because, by the power of the Holy Spirit, it is the living Word. I believe that’s what the Samaritan woman’s life must have been like, after—wonder and awe, at her encounter with Jesus. So I’d like us to wonder a bit today, about this story.
I wonder what you are thirsty for? I wonder about living water. I wonder what we do with such a gift. I wonder who is an outsider for us? I wonder who has God come for? I wonder, as the church, the body of Christ—how is the Lord among us? I wonder who are we called to love, and to be poured out for, and who are we called to be living water for?
From the wilderness of Sin the whole congregation of the Israelites journeyed by stages, as the LORD commanded. They camped at Rephidim, but there was no water for the people to drink. 2The people quarreled with Moses, and said, “Give us water to drink.” Moses said to them, “Why do you quarrel with me? Why do you test the LORD?” 3But the people thirsted there for water; and the people complained against Moses and said, “Why did you bring us out of Egypt, to kill us and our children and livestock with thirst?” 4So Moses cried out to the LORD, “What shall I do with this people? They are almost ready to stone me.” 5The LORD said to Moses, “Go on ahead of the people, and take some of the elders of Israel with you; take in your hand the staff with which you struck the Nile, and go. 6I will be standing there in front of you on the rock at Horeb. Strike the rock, and water will come out of it, so that the people may drink.” Moses did so, in the sight of the elders of Israel. 7He called the place Massah and Meribah, because the Israelites quarreled and tested the LORD, saying, “Is the LORD among us or not?”
Last week we saw and heard the story of Nicodemus. This week we hear the story of another person’s encounter with Jesus. They could not be more different: Nicodemus is a leader, a Pharisee, a powerful man, who comes to see Jesus in the middle of the night. The woman at the well is a nobody, we don’t even know her name; she is a Samaritan, hated by the Jews, and she is out at the well in the middle of the day. An unusual time to be out, getting water. In the Middle East, water is usually collected in the morning, and again just before sunset. Not in the bright light of mid- day. But that is when the woman is out, and it is where she meets Jesus.
Now, in the Bible, when a man and a woman meet at a well, the story usually resolves in a marriage. Isaac’s future wife, Rebekkah, was identified at a well. And this well is called Jacob’s well, because it is where Jacob met Rachel. But these two, will not be getting married. In fact, Jesus quizzes the woman about her marital status—or rather tells her about her whole history. She has had five husbands, and is living with another man now, who is not her husband. This story is often told this way: that of a woman, a sinful woman, who goes to the well at the middle of the day, because of her shameful past. And her past is full of shame—but not because of her sin. In that time and place, woman had no power, and could be divorced for something as heart rending as infertility, or as small as burning dinner. So this woman has been widowed, or divorced, or some combination of the two, and is now living with a man—it is thought to be a levirate marriage, in which she lives with her brother-in-law, who has refused to marry her. She has, it seems, no male relatives to speak up and protect her. She has no rights, she is helpless in this situation and society. She is an outsider on all sides. And this woman, a nobody, a non-person, is seen by Jesus. Really seen by him.
The text tells us that Jesus was traveling, and that “he had to go through Samaria”. He was traveling from Judea to Galilee- geographically, he did not have to go through Samaria in the north. Faithful Jews did whatever they could to avoid going through Samaria. Jesus had to go there to show God’s love.
And they begin a conversation. Here is the one place this encounter is like Nicodemus’. An ordinary conversation turns into something confusing, and words mean more than they appear to mean. There is talk about water—simple enough on the outside—they are at a well, after all—but then there is talk about “living water”-which can mean flowing water, or fresh water. In the Jewish tradition, the mikvah is the cleansing waters used for purification. And the rabbis still use the same term-“living water”—today. And while the waters of the mikvah are used for purification, they also are used to prepare people when they encounter God—Orthodox men go to the mikvah to wash, every morning, before going to temple for morning prayer.
And whether the woman was prepared or not, she encountered God at the well. Jesus told the woman “all that she had done”—and everything that had been done to her. She calls him a prophet, and begins what is a theological discussion with him. Note how this is different from Nicodemus: his only question was “How can this be?” The woman engages Jesus in God talk. And then, Jesus gives her a gift, for her questioning and her newly springing faith: Jesus reveals himself to her, as the Messiah: I AM, he says to her, the words God spoke out of the burning Bush, to Moses. He reveals himself to a loser, a rejected woman, an outsider—not even a Jew. She goes back to the town, and uses the same words Jesus spoke when he called the disciples to follow him—“Come and See”—and then asks: “He cannot be the Messiah, can he?” as if she cannot believe that this is what God is like, as if her life of hurt and disappointment have warned her not to hope. But as a pledge of her new life, her new identity, and her new faith, she leaves behind the water jug at the well. She knows that life will not be the same, now that she has had this encounter.
What is not at first glance apparent to us is how Jesus broke social and cultural boundaries to minister to this woman. In the Middle East, still, men do not speak to women they do not know—they don’t even make eye contact. Ken Bailey, Professor at Pittsburgh Seminary, who grew up and then taught in the Middle East for decades, said that he never, ever, passed that line. Orthodox rabbis do not even speak to their wives in public. It is not done. By social custom, Jesus, seeing her approach the well, should have withdrawn to a respectable distance away. And for a Jew to speak to a Samaritan- well, that might be an even bigger obstacle. The Samaritans were hated by the Jews, were thought to be half-breed traitors, who did not worship God correctly, who joined worship of Yahweh with worship of Greek and local gods. They were outside of the covenant, outside of God’s care.
Last week, we talked about how in John 3:16- for God so loved the world, and the word cosmos, which in the gospel of John is the God-hating world. God loves even the Samaritans, even a woman, even an outsider, enough to go out of his way to meet her. And look what she becomes: she is the first female preacher: She goes and tells. She gives her invitation: come and see- she gives her testimony, her experience- “a man who told me everything” and then she gives her confession: “He cannot be the Messiah, can he?” Now, granted……that may not sound like the most solid, affirmative confession of faith. But look at her pattern of growth: she moves from calling Jesus first “a Jew”, then “sir”, then a prophet (and remember, last week, Nicodemus called Jesus rabbi, teacher, putting Nicodemus and Jesus on the same level) to naming Jesus as the Messiah. And we are told that “many Samaritans believed in Jesus because of the women’s testimony”.
The Israelites, traveling through the desert, asked, Is the Lord among us, or not? They were thirsty, and tired, and out in the desert. Is the Lord among us, or not? It is the same question we ask whenever we are troubled, anxious, or grieving. Is the Lord among us, or not? We ask this as people of faith, and we ask this as a community of faith, as a church. After the woman’s testimony, calling people to come and meet the Lord, Jesus stayed with the Samaritans—enemies of the Jews—enemies of God, people who did not worship God rightly, who were outside the covenant. And Jesus, God, the Messiah, stayed there with them. Is the Lord among us, or not? God in Jesus was truly among the Samaritans. At the end of today’s passage, it is the Samaritans, those hated by the Jews, the enemies of God, who confess “we know that this truly is the Savior of the world.”
The world is thirsty. One of the amazing things about thirst is this: you are dehydrated a half hour before you even begin to feel thirsty. The same is true for our souls, our hearts, ourselves, as well, I think. We are dry inside, long before we know that we are thirsty. Jesus is the living water, water that overflows, water that brings eternal and new life.
There is a group called Living Waters of the World, which works in partnership with many Presbyteries of the national Presbyterian Church. They train and develop teams that not only bring clean water technology to needed areas, but also train and empower local people to maintain and develop clean water strategies onsite. On Palm Sunday, we will receive the One Great Hour of Sharing offering, part of which goes to Presbyterian Disaster Assistance—and we heard last week that monies from that fund have already been spent to provide clean, safe drinking water in Japan. Water is vitally important—we will die without it. We, who live so close to the lake, who simply turn on our taps, who hear the falls overflowing onto the roadway, who do not have to walk miles each way to scoop out dirty and contaminated water to bring back to our children—we are far removed from that well in Samaria, and from thirsty people all over the world. But we have been given the gift of living water in Jesus Christ, just like that woman at the well.
You know that Jim and I sometimes do “wondering questions” about the Scripture with the children. This is based on work by Sonya Stewart, who I had the privilege to study with. And Dr Stewart’s understanding is that when we come to Scripture, there are often no “right” answers- we all stand before the Word of God in awe and wonder—that the encounter with God is not something to be learned, and mastered, and then filed away, but is something we wonder about, over and over, because, by the power of the Holy Spirit, it is the living Word. I believe that’s what the Samaritan woman’s life must have been like, after—wonder and awe, at her encounter with Jesus. So I’d like us to wonder a bit today, about this story.
I wonder what you are thirsty for? I wonder about living water. I wonder what we do with such a gift. I wonder who is an outsider for us? I wonder who has God come for? I wonder, as the church, the body of Christ—how is the Lord among us? I wonder who are we called to love, and to be poured out for, and who are we called to be living water for?
Sermon March 20
Genesis 12:1-4 p. 8
. 12Now the LORD said to Abram, “Go from your country and your kindred and your father’s house to the land that I will show you. 2I will make of you a great nation, and I will bless you, and make your name great, so that you will be a blessing. 3I will bless those who bless you, and the one who curses you I will curse; and in you all the families of the earth shall be blessed.”
4So Abram went, as the LORD had told him; and Lot went with him. Abram was seventy-five years old when he departed from Haran.
This is the Word of the Lord…….Thanks be to God
In the weeks of Lent, we will be hearing the stories of people who heard Jesus’ message, who saw Immanuel, God with us. Here is the story of Nicodemus, taken from the Gospel according to John
John 3:1-17 p. 863
Now there was a Pharisee named Nicodemus, a leader of the Jews. 2He came to Jesus by night and said to him, “Rabbi, we know that you are a teacher who has come from God; for no one can do these signs that you do apart from the presence of God.” 3Jesus answered him, “Very truly, I tell you, no one can see the kingdom of God without being born from above.” 4Nicodemus said to him, “How can anyone be born after having grown old? Can one enter a second time into the mother’s womb and be born?” 5Jesus answered, “Very truly, I tell you, no one can enter the kingdom of God without being born of water and Spirit. 6What is born of the flesh is flesh, and what is born of the Spirit is spirit. 7Do not be astonished that I said to you, ‘You must be born from above.’ 8The wind blows where it chooses, and you hear the sound of it, but you do not know where it comes from or where it goes. So it is with everyone who is born of the Spirit.” 9Nicodemus said to him, “How can these things be?” 10Jesus answered him, “Are you a teacher of Israel, and yet you do not understand these things? 11“Very truly, I tell you, we speak of what we know and testify to what we have seen; yet you do not receive our testimony. 12If I have told you about earthly things and you do not believe, how can you believe if I tell you about heavenly things? 13No one has ascended into heaven except the one who descended from heaven, the Son of Man. 14And just as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, so must the Son of Man be lifted up, 15that whoever believes in him may have eternal life. 16“For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, so that everyone who believes in him may not perish but may have eternal life. 17“Indeed, God did not send the Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him. 18Those that believe in Him are not condemned; but those who do not believe are condemned already, because they have not believed in the name of the only Son of God. 19And this is the judgment, that the light has come into the world, and people loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil. 20For all who do evil hate the light and do not come to the light, so that their deeds may not be exposed. 21But those who do what is true come to the light, so that it may be clearly seen that their deeds have been done in God.
This is the word of the Lord…..Thanks be to God
It was a dark and stormy night. At least, it was dark night outside, and inside Nicodemus’ heart…..pretty stormy. For Nicodemus goes to Jesus in the night, under cover of darkness. Nicodemus has a lot to lose, if he is seen consorting with Jesus. Nicodemus is a pillar of the community: a Pharisee, meaning he is educated, revered, a kind of lawyer, an expert on the Bible. And he is a member of the Sanhedrin-the ruling party in politics. So he can’t be seen talking with Jesus. It just wouldn’t be right. It just isn’t done.
And yet—and yet, there is something there. Nicodemus is drawn to Jesus. Nicodemus has seen Jesus in the Temple. He has seen the signs performed—and in the gospel of John, signs are the miracles God gives—and signs are also evidence, pointers to who Jesus is. So Nicodemus has seen the evidence, and he is so close—he says to Jesus “no one can do these signs that you do apart from the presence of God”. He is so close—but he just can’t bring himself to say it. Just prior to this, other people have seen Jesus in the Temple, and we are told “many believed in his name because they saw the signs that he was doing”.
Perhaps it was also night when Abram heard God’s call. I imagine Abram, unable to sleep, looking out of his tent flap, at all of the stars of heaven. And he hears God’s voice. God calls him to give up everything—his land, his inheritance, his people—to go—where? To a land, an unnamed land, that God will show him. And, then, God tells Abram that he will be both blessed—and a blessing to others. Through you, God says, all the families of the earth will be blessed. So, Abram goes. Abram risks a lot—his whole life, in fact. And all the families of the earth, being blessed by an old, childless couple, seems to me no more astonishing than talk of being born again. The apostle Paul talks about Abraham, and says that “Abraham believed God, and it was credited to him as righteousness.” (Romans 4:3). Abram believes God, and obeys, and goes.
So after hearing about Abram, I’m a little frustrated by Nicodemus. Really—I want to say- really? You have seen the signs, you are intrigued enough to risk going to see Jesus in person, and yet….you just can’t believe. You just can’t make that jump. Jon Walton says Nicodemus is like someone buying a car, kicking the tires, even taking the car out for a spin, but just not quite ready to sign the contract. We might describe Nicodemus as “spiritual, but not religious”. What is getting in the way? I want to ask Nicodemus. How much evidence do you need? How many signs? What are you afraid of--your family? Your job? Your community? Prestige and status? Are you afraid of losing your reserved parking space near the Temple?
But then, I remember that the gospel of John is understood to have been written at a time when Christians were getting thrown out of the synagogue. The first Christians in that place were first, Jews, who had come to believe that Jesus is the Messiah. And they wanted to stay where they were, remain Jews, but also worship Christ. And the synagogue was not having any part of that. They were thrown out, cut off from family, disowned by all who knew them and loved them and could not understand just what they saw in this Jesus guy.
So in some ways, the depiction of Nicodemus is sympathetic—knowing the back story, we can perhaps understand why he comes to Jesus under cover of darkness.
But I also am a little frustrated with Jesus here. Nicodemus comes to him, and begins a conversation, begins opening up—and Jesus then answers a question that is not asked and starts talking about Spirit and flesh and wind…..in ways that make no sense at all. And he talks about being born again. Or being born from above. Or being born anew. The word means all three of those things. So it’s no wonder Nicodemus is confused. And Jesus even throws Nicodemus a bone: “No one can see the kingdom of God without being born from above” So Jesus is giving Nicodemus an in—Nicodemus is already beginning to see the kingdom of God—he just—can’t quite…make himself say it. There is a story about a farmer out in Iowa, who got married. And he had a pretty little wife, a good wife…and he loved her. He loved her so much, one day he almost told her. Nicodemus is right on the cusp of believing, and saying……and he’s not quite there.
And then, after all this confusing talk about being born, and wind and Spirit and the Son of Man being lifted up, Nicodemus asks what is an entirely reasonable question: in fact, it is the same question Mary, Jesus’ mother, asked when she was confronted with the angel “how can this be?”
And Jesus turns to Nicodemus—not to shame him, but with love, and humor, and compassion: “Are you a teacher of Israel, and yet you don’t understand these things?” Well- here’s the deep irony—these are not things to understand, these are not things to learn and digest and memorize, like facts—the wind blows where it will, you must be born from above…..they are things to believe, things not of reason, and thinking, but things of the Spirit and the heart. And then, Jesus says this, this phrase that we all memorized, that we see on placards and posters at football games and at roadsides…..John 3:16-
A saying that is so true, and so radical, that we, like Nicodemus, can’t understand it- “God so loved the world, that He gave his only son, so that everyone who believes in him may not perish, but have eternal life.” And then the next verse, which doesn’t make it onto the posters- “For God did not send his Son into the world to judge the world—the Greek word for judge there is krisis- like crisis,--not to judge the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him.” Jesus always creates a crisis for those he encounters by calling from them one of two responses: either belief or unbelief. And Nicodemus was certainly having a crisis, that night.
Kosmos—is the word we know as cosmos, or world, or universe—but in Biblical speak, and especially in the gospel of John, “cosmos” is all who are against God and against Jesus Christ. The enemies of God. The unbelievers. Even—perhaps especially--the ones who threw the early Christians out of the synagogue, who cut them off, who refused to have anything to do with them.
This is how much God loves us. God sent Jesus into the world, in order that the world—the God hating world—might be saved through him. But rebellious, sinful, prideful people—us-- kept getting it wrong, rejecting God, keep choosing darkness rather than light. God tried with a most unlikely pair- Abram and Sarai, called from far away, childless, to be a blessing to all the families of the earth. And in Jesus, we see God’s great love for the whole world again. God’s astonishing love lifted up, on the cross, and then, lifted up, again, in resurrection and new life.
We do not know, really, just what Nicodemus chose. He came, and left, in darkness. But I do wonder, and hope. Later in the gospel, he gives a half-hearted defense of Jesus to the Pharisees. And he, with Joseph of Arimathea, who is described as a secret believer, brings myrrh and aloe to the tomb, to bury Jesus. Some think that Nicodemus’ bringing such an exorbitant amount of spices to bury the body- nearly 100 pounds! showed his lack of faith, his inability to look for a resurrection. But perhaps it was a gift of extravagant price, much like the woman who poured out the nard, that expensive lotion, on Jesus’ feet. Perhaps his acts of defending Jesus and bringing spices to the tomb were acts of love and devotion and apology and faith.
But whatever Nicodemus chose, God sent Jesus for him. And for us. Perhaps there are many ways of coming to believe. For isn’t that what the gospel of John says, near the very end?
John 20:30-31 30 Now Jesus did many other signs in the presence of his disciples, which are not written in this book. 31 But these are written so that you may come to believe that Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of God, and that through believing you may have life in his name.
Perhaps Nicodemus was coming to believe…..was being born from above. How can this be? We want to ask. We have no “born again” moment in Nicodemus’ life, that we know of. We hear no testimony about his “moment of salvation.” And Jesus has pretty strong words to say about people who love darkness rather than light. But Jesus reminds us the Spirit of God blows where it will…..which is good news, for us who are in darkness, who are in dark and stormy nights, who are constantly in need of being born again, being born from above. Amen
. 12Now the LORD said to Abram, “Go from your country and your kindred and your father’s house to the land that I will show you. 2I will make of you a great nation, and I will bless you, and make your name great, so that you will be a blessing. 3I will bless those who bless you, and the one who curses you I will curse; and in you all the families of the earth shall be blessed.”
4So Abram went, as the LORD had told him; and Lot went with him. Abram was seventy-five years old when he departed from Haran.
This is the Word of the Lord…….Thanks be to God
In the weeks of Lent, we will be hearing the stories of people who heard Jesus’ message, who saw Immanuel, God with us. Here is the story of Nicodemus, taken from the Gospel according to John
John 3:1-17 p. 863
Now there was a Pharisee named Nicodemus, a leader of the Jews. 2He came to Jesus by night and said to him, “Rabbi, we know that you are a teacher who has come from God; for no one can do these signs that you do apart from the presence of God.” 3Jesus answered him, “Very truly, I tell you, no one can see the kingdom of God without being born from above.” 4Nicodemus said to him, “How can anyone be born after having grown old? Can one enter a second time into the mother’s womb and be born?” 5Jesus answered, “Very truly, I tell you, no one can enter the kingdom of God without being born of water and Spirit. 6What is born of the flesh is flesh, and what is born of the Spirit is spirit. 7Do not be astonished that I said to you, ‘You must be born from above.’ 8The wind blows where it chooses, and you hear the sound of it, but you do not know where it comes from or where it goes. So it is with everyone who is born of the Spirit.” 9Nicodemus said to him, “How can these things be?” 10Jesus answered him, “Are you a teacher of Israel, and yet you do not understand these things? 11“Very truly, I tell you, we speak of what we know and testify to what we have seen; yet you do not receive our testimony. 12If I have told you about earthly things and you do not believe, how can you believe if I tell you about heavenly things? 13No one has ascended into heaven except the one who descended from heaven, the Son of Man. 14And just as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, so must the Son of Man be lifted up, 15that whoever believes in him may have eternal life. 16“For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, so that everyone who believes in him may not perish but may have eternal life. 17“Indeed, God did not send the Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him. 18Those that believe in Him are not condemned; but those who do not believe are condemned already, because they have not believed in the name of the only Son of God. 19And this is the judgment, that the light has come into the world, and people loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil. 20For all who do evil hate the light and do not come to the light, so that their deeds may not be exposed. 21But those who do what is true come to the light, so that it may be clearly seen that their deeds have been done in God.
This is the word of the Lord…..Thanks be to God
It was a dark and stormy night. At least, it was dark night outside, and inside Nicodemus’ heart…..pretty stormy. For Nicodemus goes to Jesus in the night, under cover of darkness. Nicodemus has a lot to lose, if he is seen consorting with Jesus. Nicodemus is a pillar of the community: a Pharisee, meaning he is educated, revered, a kind of lawyer, an expert on the Bible. And he is a member of the Sanhedrin-the ruling party in politics. So he can’t be seen talking with Jesus. It just wouldn’t be right. It just isn’t done.
And yet—and yet, there is something there. Nicodemus is drawn to Jesus. Nicodemus has seen Jesus in the Temple. He has seen the signs performed—and in the gospel of John, signs are the miracles God gives—and signs are also evidence, pointers to who Jesus is. So Nicodemus has seen the evidence, and he is so close—he says to Jesus “no one can do these signs that you do apart from the presence of God”. He is so close—but he just can’t bring himself to say it. Just prior to this, other people have seen Jesus in the Temple, and we are told “many believed in his name because they saw the signs that he was doing”.
Perhaps it was also night when Abram heard God’s call. I imagine Abram, unable to sleep, looking out of his tent flap, at all of the stars of heaven. And he hears God’s voice. God calls him to give up everything—his land, his inheritance, his people—to go—where? To a land, an unnamed land, that God will show him. And, then, God tells Abram that he will be both blessed—and a blessing to others. Through you, God says, all the families of the earth will be blessed. So, Abram goes. Abram risks a lot—his whole life, in fact. And all the families of the earth, being blessed by an old, childless couple, seems to me no more astonishing than talk of being born again. The apostle Paul talks about Abraham, and says that “Abraham believed God, and it was credited to him as righteousness.” (Romans 4:3). Abram believes God, and obeys, and goes.
So after hearing about Abram, I’m a little frustrated by Nicodemus. Really—I want to say- really? You have seen the signs, you are intrigued enough to risk going to see Jesus in person, and yet….you just can’t believe. You just can’t make that jump. Jon Walton says Nicodemus is like someone buying a car, kicking the tires, even taking the car out for a spin, but just not quite ready to sign the contract. We might describe Nicodemus as “spiritual, but not religious”. What is getting in the way? I want to ask Nicodemus. How much evidence do you need? How many signs? What are you afraid of--your family? Your job? Your community? Prestige and status? Are you afraid of losing your reserved parking space near the Temple?
But then, I remember that the gospel of John is understood to have been written at a time when Christians were getting thrown out of the synagogue. The first Christians in that place were first, Jews, who had come to believe that Jesus is the Messiah. And they wanted to stay where they were, remain Jews, but also worship Christ. And the synagogue was not having any part of that. They were thrown out, cut off from family, disowned by all who knew them and loved them and could not understand just what they saw in this Jesus guy.
So in some ways, the depiction of Nicodemus is sympathetic—knowing the back story, we can perhaps understand why he comes to Jesus under cover of darkness.
But I also am a little frustrated with Jesus here. Nicodemus comes to him, and begins a conversation, begins opening up—and Jesus then answers a question that is not asked and starts talking about Spirit and flesh and wind…..in ways that make no sense at all. And he talks about being born again. Or being born from above. Or being born anew. The word means all three of those things. So it’s no wonder Nicodemus is confused. And Jesus even throws Nicodemus a bone: “No one can see the kingdom of God without being born from above” So Jesus is giving Nicodemus an in—Nicodemus is already beginning to see the kingdom of God—he just—can’t quite…make himself say it. There is a story about a farmer out in Iowa, who got married. And he had a pretty little wife, a good wife…and he loved her. He loved her so much, one day he almost told her. Nicodemus is right on the cusp of believing, and saying……and he’s not quite there.
And then, after all this confusing talk about being born, and wind and Spirit and the Son of Man being lifted up, Nicodemus asks what is an entirely reasonable question: in fact, it is the same question Mary, Jesus’ mother, asked when she was confronted with the angel “how can this be?”
And Jesus turns to Nicodemus—not to shame him, but with love, and humor, and compassion: “Are you a teacher of Israel, and yet you don’t understand these things?” Well- here’s the deep irony—these are not things to understand, these are not things to learn and digest and memorize, like facts—the wind blows where it will, you must be born from above…..they are things to believe, things not of reason, and thinking, but things of the Spirit and the heart. And then, Jesus says this, this phrase that we all memorized, that we see on placards and posters at football games and at roadsides…..John 3:16-
A saying that is so true, and so radical, that we, like Nicodemus, can’t understand it- “God so loved the world, that He gave his only son, so that everyone who believes in him may not perish, but have eternal life.” And then the next verse, which doesn’t make it onto the posters- “For God did not send his Son into the world to judge the world—the Greek word for judge there is krisis- like crisis,--not to judge the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him.” Jesus always creates a crisis for those he encounters by calling from them one of two responses: either belief or unbelief. And Nicodemus was certainly having a crisis, that night.
Kosmos—is the word we know as cosmos, or world, or universe—but in Biblical speak, and especially in the gospel of John, “cosmos” is all who are against God and against Jesus Christ. The enemies of God. The unbelievers. Even—perhaps especially--the ones who threw the early Christians out of the synagogue, who cut them off, who refused to have anything to do with them.
This is how much God loves us. God sent Jesus into the world, in order that the world—the God hating world—might be saved through him. But rebellious, sinful, prideful people—us-- kept getting it wrong, rejecting God, keep choosing darkness rather than light. God tried with a most unlikely pair- Abram and Sarai, called from far away, childless, to be a blessing to all the families of the earth. And in Jesus, we see God’s great love for the whole world again. God’s astonishing love lifted up, on the cross, and then, lifted up, again, in resurrection and new life.
We do not know, really, just what Nicodemus chose. He came, and left, in darkness. But I do wonder, and hope. Later in the gospel, he gives a half-hearted defense of Jesus to the Pharisees. And he, with Joseph of Arimathea, who is described as a secret believer, brings myrrh and aloe to the tomb, to bury Jesus. Some think that Nicodemus’ bringing such an exorbitant amount of spices to bury the body- nearly 100 pounds! showed his lack of faith, his inability to look for a resurrection. But perhaps it was a gift of extravagant price, much like the woman who poured out the nard, that expensive lotion, on Jesus’ feet. Perhaps his acts of defending Jesus and bringing spices to the tomb were acts of love and devotion and apology and faith.
But whatever Nicodemus chose, God sent Jesus for him. And for us. Perhaps there are many ways of coming to believe. For isn’t that what the gospel of John says, near the very end?
John 20:30-31 30 Now Jesus did many other signs in the presence of his disciples, which are not written in this book. 31 But these are written so that you may come to believe that Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of God, and that through believing you may have life in his name.
Perhaps Nicodemus was coming to believe…..was being born from above. How can this be? We want to ask. We have no “born again” moment in Nicodemus’ life, that we know of. We hear no testimony about his “moment of salvation.” And Jesus has pretty strong words to say about people who love darkness rather than light. But Jesus reminds us the Spirit of God blows where it will…..which is good news, for us who are in darkness, who are in dark and stormy nights, who are constantly in need of being born again, being born from above. Amen
Sunday, March 13, 2011
sermon March 13
Genesis 2:15-17, 3:1-7 p 2
15The LORD God took the man and put him in the garden of Eden to till it and keep it.
16And the LORD God commanded the man, “You may freely eat of every tree of the garden; 17but of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat of it you shall die.”
3Now the serpent was more crafty than any other wild animal that the LORD God had made. He said to the woman, “Did God say, ‘You shall not eat from any tree in the garden’?” 2The woman said to the serpent, “We may eat of the fruit of the trees in the garden; 3but God said, ‘You shall not eat of the fruit of the tree that is in the middle of the garden, nor shall you touch it, or you shall die.’“ 4But the serpent said to the woman, “You will not die; 5for God knows that when you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.”
6So when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, and that it was a delight to the eyes, and that the tree was to be desired to make one wise, she took of its fruit and ate; and she also gave some to her husband, who was with her, and he ate. 7Then the eyes of both were opened, and they knew that they were naked; and they sewed fig leaves together and made loincloths for themselves.
This is the Word of the Lord…..Thanks be to God
Matthew 4:1-11 (a reading from Scripture…Listen now, to the Word of the Lord)
(script)
Jesus was out in the wilderness. Led there by the Spirit, immediately after his baptism in the Jordan River. The same Spirit who came down as a dove, while a voice from heaven said “This is my Son, the beloved…” has sent him out into the wilderness.
And now Jesus is out in the desert, and has been fasting for forty days. And he is famished. Satan, the deceiver comes to him. And with subtle words, reasonable words, begins…..”IF……iffff” If you are the Son of God”…….asking about what God has just said.
So soon? The questions and the doubt and the deceit begin so soon- “if you are the son of God”
God has just declared, loudly, and publicly, that Jesus is the Son of God, and beloved, and that God is well pleased with him. The deceiver is trying hard, with seductive words, with reasonable questions, even quoting Scripture at Jesus, to get under Jesus’ skin and raise—even just a little—a question about what God has said, to get in between—even just a little- the relationship between Christ and the Father.
Remember the snake in the garden……God has told the humans in the garden that “they may freely eat of every tree of the garden”….and the serpent begins, asking “Did God say “you shall not eat from any tree in the garden?....” No! that’s not what God said. God told the humans, the man and woman, that they may freely eat of every tree….except for one tree. The deceiver is already, so soon in paradise, asking, with subtle words, with reasonable questions, about what God had said.
This, I think, is the essence of sin—listening to a voice other than God’s. Not a list of behaviors, not a grocery list of actions you’ve done this past week that you are sorry for—argued with your sister, had unkind thoughts about your spouse, didn’t return the overpayment of change that you received in the store. No—sin is about our own, internal state—a state of turning to and listening to anything that is not God.
We have talked a lot, this year, about baptism. In baptism, we are marked by God, given our identity, claimed as Christ’s own forever. We are marked by water and by Spirit. But very soon, after our baptism, we are out in the wilderness, and the questions begin…about who we are, and whose we are. About what God has said about us. Are we really children of God? Has God really claimed us? Does God’s love extend to us—to me, even to me, we ask—or, rather, the voice of the deceiver, inside our head, does.
This is the season of Lent. We begin the season of Lent by being marked, once again. Instead of water, though, we are marked by ashes. Symbols of repentance, and grief, but also a reminder of what we are made of, a reminder of our mortality.
Lent is traditionally thought of as a time of penitence, and sacrifice. What are you giving up for Lent? we ask one another. Chocolate, we say, or facebook, or beer. Some people choose to take things on instead of giving things up: more bible reading, or a discipline of daily prayer, or making a donation to the food pantry for each of the 40 days of lent.
The word discipline reminds us of rules, and punishment, maybe even getting whacked over the knuckles with a ruler. But discipline is related to the word “disciple” that is, one who follows. The disciplines of Lent help us follow in the way of Christ. The disciplines of Lent help us tune out the voice of the deceiver, and focus on the voice of God who claims us as a beloved child.
These "sacrifices," the disciplines, are not intended as good works offered by us to God; rather, they are God's gifts to us to remind us who we are, God's beloved children, so priceless that God was willing to go to any length -- or, more appropriately, to any depth -- to tell us that we are loved, that we have value, that we have purpose.
And these disciplines are to get us back to where we started— claimed by God. They are a way to silence any voice but God’s in our hearts. Adam and Eve, listening to the snake, forgot whose they are. They forget who they are. They listened to the voice that asks whether God is trustworthy….whether what God says is true.
When we hear this story of Jesus in the wilderness, of Jesus and temptation, we often think “I want to imitate Jesus. He resisted temptations, so I will too.” Temptations are not once and done. Jesus resisted temptation, but struggled with them again, in Gethsemane, and at the cross. Our life as Christians does not eliminate doubt, or need, or a sense of incompleteness. As humans, as heirs of Adam and Eve, we will inevitably fall short in claiming our God-given identity. We will listen to voices that question our relationship with God. Yet Jesus has triumphed at the cross, committing himself, and us-- to God. Therefore, when we fall short, we confess our failings, and trust that in and through the crucified and risen Jesus we have the promise of forgiveness and new life. A life of discipleship is turning, again and again—and again—toward Jesus, who is Lord, and turning away from anything that is not God. In the baptism liturgy, we ask “Do you turn from the ways of sin and renounce evil and its power in the world?” But it is a daily turning, sometimes a moment by moment turning. Eugene Peterson, author of The Message, calls it “a long obedience in the same direction”. And we are strengthened for this turning away from, and turning to Christ, by disciplines—or prayer, of fasting, of repentance, of intentional acts of love and mercy.
In the wilderness, Jesus triumphed. He did not forget who he was or whose he was. He did not listen to that voice—reasonable and seductive—that called to him. In our wilderness, whatever that looks like, we are still God’s. Marked by God in water and Spirit. Made out of dust. But joined to Christ forever. Because Christ has triumphed, we are given strength to turn to God. Again and again. Amen.
note: quotes by David Lose, www.workingpreacher.org
15The LORD God took the man and put him in the garden of Eden to till it and keep it.
16And the LORD God commanded the man, “You may freely eat of every tree of the garden; 17but of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat of it you shall die.”
3Now the serpent was more crafty than any other wild animal that the LORD God had made. He said to the woman, “Did God say, ‘You shall not eat from any tree in the garden’?” 2The woman said to the serpent, “We may eat of the fruit of the trees in the garden; 3but God said, ‘You shall not eat of the fruit of the tree that is in the middle of the garden, nor shall you touch it, or you shall die.’“ 4But the serpent said to the woman, “You will not die; 5for God knows that when you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.”
6So when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, and that it was a delight to the eyes, and that the tree was to be desired to make one wise, she took of its fruit and ate; and she also gave some to her husband, who was with her, and he ate. 7Then the eyes of both were opened, and they knew that they were naked; and they sewed fig leaves together and made loincloths for themselves.
This is the Word of the Lord…..Thanks be to God
Matthew 4:1-11 (a reading from Scripture…Listen now, to the Word of the Lord)
(script)
Jesus was out in the wilderness. Led there by the Spirit, immediately after his baptism in the Jordan River. The same Spirit who came down as a dove, while a voice from heaven said “This is my Son, the beloved…” has sent him out into the wilderness.
And now Jesus is out in the desert, and has been fasting for forty days. And he is famished. Satan, the deceiver comes to him. And with subtle words, reasonable words, begins…..”IF……iffff” If you are the Son of God”…….asking about what God has just said.
So soon? The questions and the doubt and the deceit begin so soon- “if you are the son of God”
God has just declared, loudly, and publicly, that Jesus is the Son of God, and beloved, and that God is well pleased with him. The deceiver is trying hard, with seductive words, with reasonable questions, even quoting Scripture at Jesus, to get under Jesus’ skin and raise—even just a little—a question about what God has said, to get in between—even just a little- the relationship between Christ and the Father.
Remember the snake in the garden……God has told the humans in the garden that “they may freely eat of every tree of the garden”….and the serpent begins, asking “Did God say “you shall not eat from any tree in the garden?....” No! that’s not what God said. God told the humans, the man and woman, that they may freely eat of every tree….except for one tree. The deceiver is already, so soon in paradise, asking, with subtle words, with reasonable questions, about what God had said.
This, I think, is the essence of sin—listening to a voice other than God’s. Not a list of behaviors, not a grocery list of actions you’ve done this past week that you are sorry for—argued with your sister, had unkind thoughts about your spouse, didn’t return the overpayment of change that you received in the store. No—sin is about our own, internal state—a state of turning to and listening to anything that is not God.
We have talked a lot, this year, about baptism. In baptism, we are marked by God, given our identity, claimed as Christ’s own forever. We are marked by water and by Spirit. But very soon, after our baptism, we are out in the wilderness, and the questions begin…about who we are, and whose we are. About what God has said about us. Are we really children of God? Has God really claimed us? Does God’s love extend to us—to me, even to me, we ask—or, rather, the voice of the deceiver, inside our head, does.
This is the season of Lent. We begin the season of Lent by being marked, once again. Instead of water, though, we are marked by ashes. Symbols of repentance, and grief, but also a reminder of what we are made of, a reminder of our mortality.
Lent is traditionally thought of as a time of penitence, and sacrifice. What are you giving up for Lent? we ask one another. Chocolate, we say, or facebook, or beer. Some people choose to take things on instead of giving things up: more bible reading, or a discipline of daily prayer, or making a donation to the food pantry for each of the 40 days of lent.
The word discipline reminds us of rules, and punishment, maybe even getting whacked over the knuckles with a ruler. But discipline is related to the word “disciple” that is, one who follows. The disciplines of Lent help us follow in the way of Christ. The disciplines of Lent help us tune out the voice of the deceiver, and focus on the voice of God who claims us as a beloved child.
These "sacrifices," the disciplines, are not intended as good works offered by us to God; rather, they are God's gifts to us to remind us who we are, God's beloved children, so priceless that God was willing to go to any length -- or, more appropriately, to any depth -- to tell us that we are loved, that we have value, that we have purpose.
And these disciplines are to get us back to where we started— claimed by God. They are a way to silence any voice but God’s in our hearts. Adam and Eve, listening to the snake, forgot whose they are. They forget who they are. They listened to the voice that asks whether God is trustworthy….whether what God says is true.
When we hear this story of Jesus in the wilderness, of Jesus and temptation, we often think “I want to imitate Jesus. He resisted temptations, so I will too.” Temptations are not once and done. Jesus resisted temptation, but struggled with them again, in Gethsemane, and at the cross. Our life as Christians does not eliminate doubt, or need, or a sense of incompleteness. As humans, as heirs of Adam and Eve, we will inevitably fall short in claiming our God-given identity. We will listen to voices that question our relationship with God. Yet Jesus has triumphed at the cross, committing himself, and us-- to God. Therefore, when we fall short, we confess our failings, and trust that in and through the crucified and risen Jesus we have the promise of forgiveness and new life. A life of discipleship is turning, again and again—and again—toward Jesus, who is Lord, and turning away from anything that is not God. In the baptism liturgy, we ask “Do you turn from the ways of sin and renounce evil and its power in the world?” But it is a daily turning, sometimes a moment by moment turning. Eugene Peterson, author of The Message, calls it “a long obedience in the same direction”. And we are strengthened for this turning away from, and turning to Christ, by disciplines—or prayer, of fasting, of repentance, of intentional acts of love and mercy.
In the wilderness, Jesus triumphed. He did not forget who he was or whose he was. He did not listen to that voice—reasonable and seductive—that called to him. In our wilderness, whatever that looks like, we are still God’s. Marked by God in water and Spirit. Made out of dust. But joined to Christ forever. Because Christ has triumphed, we are given strength to turn to God. Again and again. Amen.
note: quotes by David Lose, www.workingpreacher.org
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