Here we are, slowly moving back toward worshiping in the church building.
We,
of course, the people, are the church.
There is no doubt about that.
Wherever we go Christ’s church is present, but the church building where
we gather does hold a special place in our hearts. The same way that your childhood home is not
your family, but wandering into it and smelling the smells and seeing the pictures
on the wall will make you think of family, so too the church building draws us
to the familiarity of Jesus and it feels like home.
But,
it is not the building that is our spiritual home, but Jesus himself who is our
home.
And,
just as seeing the familiar front door, and climbing the familiar stairs within
my childhood home immediately sets my heart at ease and alleviates the stresses
of the world, Jesus hopes the same might happen for his followers when they are
at home with him.
"Do
not let your hearts be troubled. Believe in God, believe also in me. In my Father's house there are many dwelling
places.” Jesus promises. “If it were not
so, would I have told you that I go to prepare a place for you? And 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.
Now,
in the Greek where it says “In my Father’s house there are many dwelling places,”
that more accurately translates to say that there are many “abiding places.” Think here of how Jesus promises that we will
abide in him and he in us. In the life
of Christ, there is space for us all.
And,
this is good news to the disciples because in their story Jesus has just
declared that he is going to die, Judas has left the scene in order to betray
Jesus, and Peter is told that he will deny him.
It is a lot. Just like these last
couple of months have been a lot for all of us.
The
disciples do not know what things will look like once Jesus is gone, we do not
know what things will look like in just a couple of weeks.
Judas
has betrayed Jesus and relations within our own homes have not necessarily been
going smoothly during all of this uncertainty.
And,
then there is Peter, who is told that he will not even acknowledge that he had
any part in the life of Jesus. It is a
lot, and it threatens to leave all of them without a sense of home.
In
fact, they are on a journey, without knowing the destination, and not knowing
how to even get there. Sound familiar?
But,
Jesus has a promise for them and for us.
Jesus promises that he is already on the journey to go and prepare a
place for them and us.
The
one thing that soothed the hearts of ancient travelers was the knowledge that
the town to which they were going contained nice people who would open up their
homes and feed them and let them stay the night.
This
was general ancient hospitality that was expected in the ancient world, but not
always given.
But,
Jesus promises that where we are going, he is already there preparing a place
for us to abide with him. In other
words, even though we do not know where we are going or how we are going to get
there, Jesus has journeyed there first and made a home for us, his weary travelers.
There
is a place in which even the denying Peter can abide. Even for Peter who messes the whole thing
up. Even for Peter who forgets the one
who gave him his very life. Even for Peter
there is a home that has been prepared.
Even his journey will not come to a crashing end. This is grace.
And,
that is the promise from Jesus Christ that I want you to carry with you in the
days ahead. You are on a journey, and
you surely have no idea where the journey will end or even how you will get to
the end.
We
agree with Thomas saying, "Lord, we do not know where you are going. How
can we know the way?"
That
is right, Lord, I have no idea where you are taking us in all of this, and even
if I did, I certainly do not know the right road to take in order to get
there! I am just as lost in all of this
as anyone else!
But,
Jesus looks Thomas, you, and I in the eye and says, “I am the way, the truth,
and the life.” Jesus says, I am the road
and I am the destination. No matter
where you are, I am there also.
I
have to tell you, these are words of grace for me. These are words of comfort that you only get
if you have the privilege of finding yourself in a safe and loving home. These are words that give us the space to cry
out, “We don’t know the way!” while still reminding us that it does not matter. We have been near our home the entire
time.
God,
in Jesus Christ, has been with us the entire time. We were never lost.
There
was a time that my family was walking through the local mall; remember those,
malls? Remember gathering with lots and
lots of other people in one space? Boy,
it only seems a couple of months ago?
In
any case, I was probably around three, and my attention was drawn to a toy in a
store window. In an instant, as I wandered
toward the toy, I became lost. I cried
as I turned around and around, searching for my parents who were nowhere to be
seen. It was only a brief moment in
time, but it felt like an eternity. For
a three year old, my entire life was at stake.
Who would feed me, clothe me, protect me, and love me?
But,
soon I felt the gentle hand of someone who belonged to my home. Even though I felt lost from my parents, and I
felt lost from any means of getting home, it is absolutely true that my parents
knew where I was the entire time.
It
is true now too. You may feel lost, not
knowing how you are going to return to any sense of normalcy. Maybe, you have
lost precious events or markers in life. Maybe, you’ve lost a “someone” quite
recently. You might feel lost from home,
but Jesus has known where you are the entire time. “I will come again and take you to myself,”
Jesus promises.
So,
live with that promise. Live knowing
that you are never truly lost. Live
knowing that no matter where you are or how confusing things get, Jesus and his
grace is always the way…the road to travel, the truth…all that is truly important,
and the life. Find your eternal home in
Jesus along with his grace and love, all of which never come to an end.
No comments:
Post a Comment