Welcome saints of God, on this All Saints Sunday. You heard me right; I called you the saints of God, because it is true. Sure, we are surrounded by the images and the spirit of those who have gone before us: those who have led us in the faith and shown us the love of Jesus Christ in very real ways.
But the saints of God are more than the religious superheroes of the Church universal such as Saint Michael, the angel who will battle Satan at the end of the age; or Saint Jude, who spread hope throughout the lost world by sharing the gospel and is still regarded as the saint of lost things…like my other set of reading glasses; or Saint Francis of Assisi who chose of life of poverty, like Jesus, and preached the good news of Jesus Christ, even to the animals he loved.
Of course, we still remember those great saints of the church on this day, but today is intended to remember and celebrate so many more people. It not only celebrates those who climbed up to spiritual heights, but it is more appropriately symbolized by this: a down arrow.
That is right, one day a religion professor drew a simple down arrow on the board in the front of the classroom and just stood there, waiting for the message to sink into the students. “All of Christianity can be summed up in this one symbol,” the religion professor declared. After a moment a student joked, “We are all going to hell?”
“No,” the professor answered. “It means that God always comes down. God comes down to meet us. God comes down to heal us. God comes down in the form of a human, Jesus Christ, to heal us and save us. God always comes down to us as a gift. At no point do we need to figure out how to climb up to God. God always comes down.”
And, that was the lesson. God always comes down. We do not need to prove anything to God to earn God’s love. We do not need to accomplish a long list of tasks in order to earn a place at God’s table. God always comes down to us, welcomes us, and sits at the table with us. God always comes down. And, everyone that God gathers together when God comes down is considered a saint of God. Those who Jesus came to, who now trust in him, are all saints of God.
I know that this flies in the face of so much that we are taught in our culture. We are taught to work hard, and if you work hard you will discover the joys that can only be found when you have clawed your way to the top and found success. Nice houses, boats, vacations to exotic places, someone to clean your house for you even though the four children keep messing it up every single day, it can all be yours if you climb your way to the top. This is the image of what we are taught: a man climbing a mountain.
It is only natural that this image of success creeps into our religious lives. It is only natural that we would gaze up and set our sights on the spiritually successful, the saints of old: Mother Theresa who ministered to and changed the lives of thousands of poor people, and Martin Luther King Jr. who fought for equality and justice for all. Again, the accomplishments of these saints are truly commendable, but we do not celebrate them because they somehow figured out a way to climb their way up to God. Rather we celebrate because in them we see in very real ways that Jesus Christ has comes down to dwell with us.
God always comes down, not the other way around.
Do not take it from me and you certainly do not have to take it from some anonymous religion professor in a sermon illustration. Let us take a look in the scriptures themselves. In fact, let us take a look at the Jesus’ Sermon on the Plain. You find this in Luke, Chapter 6, but before we dig into what Jesus says, let us set the scene.
Jesus has just gone up a mountain to pray, and while up there he gathers his disciples and chooses 12 of them to be his apostles. Those 12 go from being learners, which is what a disciple is, to being an apostle, or a representative of all that Jesus is about. They are 12 people, set apart to be bearers of Jesus and his love.
Now, here is the important part. The Bible says that Jesus “came down with them and stood on a level place, with a great crowd of his disciples and a great multitude of people from all Judea, Jerusalem, and the coast of Tyre and Sidon. They had come to hear him and to be healed of their diseases; and those who were troubled with unclean spirits were cured. And all in the crowd were trying to touch him, for power came out from him and healed all of them” (Luke 6:17-19).
There is a teaching that is so simple in this story, yet it is so profound, that it is the basis of all Jesus’ ministry. And, this simple, but profound teaching is found right in those words, “He came down with them and stood on a level place.”
I know it seems like this is just the throw away part of the story, but it is the essential part. Jesus came down. God always comes down. But, more than that, those who are to follow him, to be like him, to share in his power (the Apostles), “come down” with them. And to where do they come down? A level place full of people in need.
This story could have been told a different way. It could have been told like it is told in Matthew where Jesus goes up the mountain to teach everyone, like a new Moses giving a new law to the people. But, this preacher, Luke, deems it essential that we know that Jesus comes down to a level plain, and there he ministers to the people, healing them and teaching them.
Jesus comes down and gathers with us, normal people, on a level place. It reminds me of my favorite teacher in the entire world. She was my second grade teacher. She was kind and loving, like many teachers, but the one thing she did that was different from my other teachers was that when you called to her for help, she would come and kneel down, getting to your short, child level, and look you in the eye and lead you to the right answer. The other teachers would tower over us and give us directions from above, but she came down to us and it made a difference.
And, the Bible says that Jesus came down to a level plain to be with us. And, while he is doing that, Jesus teaches us who is welcome to be a part of his kingdom. “Blessed are you who are poor, for yours is the kingdom of God. “Blessed are you who are hungry now, for you will be filled. “Blessed are you who weep now, for you will laugh. “Blessed are you when people hate you, and when they exclude you, revile you, and defame you on account of the Son of Man. Rejoice in that day and leap for joy, for surely your reward is great in heaven…” (Luke 6:20-23).
So, here is the picture. Jesus has come down the mountain onto a level plain with a bunch of his disciples and his 12 newly minted apostles, he heals the masses of people upon whom he descends, then he teaches his disciples that these very people, who he chose to come down to, are the people of the kingdom: the poor, the hungry, the grieving, hated and excluded. These ordinary people are the saints of God. The saints of God are those people to whom Jesus comes down. These people who have been touched by Jesus are the children of the kingdom. God always comes down.
That is why we remember and celebrate ordinary people of faith today as saints; both those who have died who we remember today, and you who are gathered here in this place. Those to whom Jesus has come down are the saints of God. Those who have been touched by Jesus Christ are the children of the kingdom. We are saints, not because we are great, but because Jesus is great.
Are you poor? You are still a saint. I want you to know that one of the most faithful and loving people of God that I have ever met in my life was an old neighbor lady who owned very little, but gave all she had to her neighbors. She took the little money she had to splurge on a couple of poor college students, taking us to the Chinese buffet to feast on the stories of Jesus and to feast on the sugar donuts. They were really good! She was poor, but so was Jesus! She was poor, but she was a saint. Jesus comes down, and because he does, we are all on a level plain.
Are you grieving? Are you weeping? Are you at your end? Are you lost and in need of healing? Are you unable to climb up the hill? Are you unable to even climb up a single step? The Bible has a promise for you also. Jesus has come down to you. He has met you on the level place and promised that you will be brought to a new day where you will laugh once again. He has come down and welcomed you to the kingdom. Find your new life in Jesus Christ, O saint of God.
God always comes down. Jesus always comes down, and when he does, you will find yourself face to face with eternal life and eternal love. God always comes down, to you. And, that is what makes a difference, O saint of God.
Acknowledgement: "God Comes Down" is a concept thoroughly explored by Kelly Fryer in her book, "Reclaiming the L Word" from Augsburg Fortress Press
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