Trinity Sunday, ah yes…the Sunday where every preacher becomes a heretic. Why is this? Because it is the only Sunday where we feel compelled to explain to you the unexplainable…where we feel it is our duty to shape mystery and divinity into a tangible thing so that you can get a grasp upon a truth that we ourselves do not have a grasp.
I love Google searches because you can find some really great heretical stuff out there just by typing a couple of words. I typed, “Trinity is like…” into the Google search box and I came up with only a little over 21 million hits. Like I said, Trinity Sunday is the Sunday where every preacher becomes a heretic, and apparently each one of us is so proud of our heresy that we put it on the web for everyone to see.
I love one of the first hits, it sounds so promising in its opening statement:
“Perhaps the most difficult concept of Christianity to explain is the mystery of the Trinity. How can our God exist in three separate and distinct persons: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, yet be one God?
If Christians find it hard to grasp this possibility, imagine the problem it presents for those of other faiths. Moslems, in particular, cannot understand how Christians can profess to believe that there is only one God, yet worship Him as three individual beings. They claim that Christianity is not monotheistic, but polytheistic.
Can our belief in the Trinity be explained in understandable terms?
Perhaps it can!”
I would just like to say one thing; any time you start using pitches from used car salesmen to promote your theological assertion, you know that you that what follows must be great. And it is great, because did you not know that God is like three-in-one shampoo. I bet you did not know that. I did not know that either. That is right, each part of the shampoo does a different task, but it is the same substance. Tada! All of your questions about the Trinity answered, plus your hair is now shiny and clean! Just fail to mention that this is actually the heresy of tri-thiesm, because there are actually three gods living in that shampoo to do the different tasks of washing your scalp…if you do not mention that, it works perfect!
Oh, is three-in-one shampoo last year’s model for explaining the Trinity, well then, let us look in the new lot. How about the Trinity is like water! Of course, God quenches our thirst, it makes total sense. Plus, water can exist in three forms, as a vapor (steam), as a liquid (that wet stuff), and as a solid (what you use to cool your drink, ice). This is great, I totally get God now. I had no idea that it is actually God coming out of my pours when I get hot. No, actually sweat is not God; this famous heresy is known as, modalism. Yeah, that is right; the heresy that says that God can only be in one place at one time, not as “Father, Son, and Holy Spirit,” but “Father, Son, or Holy Spirit.”
Did you know that God is also an egg, an apple (which solved lots of problems for people who do not like God in the old testament, just peal the tough Holy Spirit off the outside and core the creator God out from the inside and you only have sweet juicy Jesus left), a three layer bar…Oh, I could go on and on with apparently twenty million, nine hundred and ninety nine thousand, nine hundred and ninety five more examples.
There was actually one that I kind of liked. The Trinity is like the ocean. The ocean is God and the waves that rise to form are Jesus. Jesus never separates from God the Father, but is distinct. And the ocean permeates the air with its salty moisture, drawing you to its shores just as the Holy Spirit draws us together.
This too is not a great example, but I kind of like where the end is going, with the salt air being like the Holy Spirit drawing us close to God. Of course, God is not an ocean, or a wave, but God does draw us into a relationship. This is what the Biblical witness has to say about our Trinitarian God.
It is interesting that Paul never tries to attempt to describe God so that we can understand God as something (nor does any other biblical writer). They never try the God is an apple bit. But they do talk about God as Father, God as Son, and God as Holy Spirit a lot, and it all has to do with a loving relationship.
God the Father has made us right; God has set us straight, through the love of Jesus, so that we might live in peace with God. Wow, that is amazing. Notice how trite all of this talk about God being like a shampoo is compared to that. God wants to live in peace with you. God the Father has made things right between the two of you through the cross of Christ and the alluring draw of the Holy Spirit. God desires to live at peace with you and with all creation. This is not understanding the Trinity; this is living with the Trinity. Maybe the Trinity is like someone in your home who you dearly love; you will never understand them or what they do, sometimes they make you infinitely angry, but at the same time, they comfort you, they help to direct you, you can get a lot done together, and most of all, without them the house would not be full of love.
You see, the Trinity is not about understanding. We do not understand the ones we love. But, we have a life and we have hope because we have a loving relationship. Understanding is not the point. God choosing to live with us is the point. And, God is present here with us. As Paul says, “God's love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit that has been given to us.” God is present now, and so are you, and it is a beautiful relationship.
All Scripture quotes are from the New Revised Standard Version Bible, copyrighted, 1989 by the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the U.S.A., and is used by permission. All rights reserved.
Tuesday, June 22, 2010
Reflection on John 14:8-17
When I was a senior in high school, my parents left me. Now, I do not want you getting the wrong idea here; this is not going to be a story about abandonment where I come out the survivor of cruel parents after living years on the hard paved streets of the city. No, while I was a senior in high school, my Father graduated college and was moving on to go to school at the seminary to become a pastor. I was a senior. I had friends. I had a life. I was not going along with. So, my parents left me behind.
I remember the days right before they left. I wandered around the house filled with a strange sort of pain and fear. I was already missing them terribly, my heart was beating fast and the tears held back just around the corner of my eyes. Plus, I had all sorts of question. They could not go because…I was not quite sure how to pay for gas other than at the pump. What if I could not just slide in my card. Who was I to talk to? What was I to say? Or, what do you do when you run out of checks; how do you get more? How much do you tip a waitress? How do you drive in downtown Omaha? I had all of these questions that I needed answered, but the questions were all basically the same question: How do I possibly live without you? I am going to be so alone.
Philip joins me in these questions as Jesus tells his disciples that he is going to leave. Jesus is going to the cross. Jesus is going to die. Jesus is going away to the Father, and the disciples will again be alone. Who is going to show them the ways of God? Who is going to direct them in what they should do and to whom they should give help and where they are to go? Jesus, you have not finished showing us everything! “Lord, show us the Father and we will be satisfied.” Show us God before you go. Jesus, do not go; we are going to be so alone!
Like every parent, my parents did not just up and move hundreds of miles away without somehow preparing for all of these unanswered questions. Just outside of my new bedroom, were a new set of parents who had graciously taken me in for the year. I moved in with a wonderful family and from them I learned lots of things such as: how to tie a tie. I learned how to sew a button back on my shirt. I learned that Aussie Shampoo will ruin my hair leaving it dry and like wire for more than a month. I learned all kinds of things from these gracious people. My parents were not stupid. They left me people right next to my bedroom door who would guide me in the same ways that they would.
Disciples of Christ, you too have not been left alone. The Holy Spirit, the paraklete in Greek, the advocate, the one who walks beside us, is right here with us. Jesus has not left us orphaned. Jesus has given us the gift of a next door neighbor! But, this is good next door neighbor. The Holy Spirit will not let its dog leave gifts in your lawn, the Holy Spirit will not cut down your apple tree, nor will the Holy Spirit be the drill sergeant of life next door.
The Holy Spirit is the one who will live beside you, walk beside you, love you, and remind you that you are God’s. The Holy Spirit will remind you of the Father, and of Jesus so that you will not go through life alone.
I am not sure that all Christians realize that they have a next door neighbor. Sure, they have been told that in sermons and such, but who listens to them…nice nap fests that they are. No, many Christians do not realize that they have a heavenly next door neighbor. They have let their property line bushes grow tall and thick and they cannot even see over the property line. The neighbor is still there of course. The overgrown bushes are not the neighbor’s fault. But, the bushes do allow us to feel lonely. We feel as if we have no gifts from God. We feel as if God has no use for us. We simple feel scared to try anything for the sake of the risen one, because we cannot see the encouragement and hear the wisdom from our neighbor.
But, if we allowed the bushes to be trimmed we would see that “the one who believes in [Jesus] will also do the works that [Jesus does] and, in fact, will do greater works than these...” There is no need to live in fear. There is no need to live as a sheltered Christian. The Spirit has taken up residence right next to us and will guide us in the ways and works of God.
Did you not hear Jesus say, “I will do whatever you ask in my name…If in my name you ask me for anything, I will do it.”? This is not a divine promise to grant you all of your wishes. It is much better than that. It is the divine expression of a parent that says, “I would do anything for you. You are not alone. You are not worthless. You are special. You are a gift to the world. You have gifts to share with the world, and I would do anything to make you and your gifts shine.”
The Holy Spirit has taken us residence next to you, and together you and the Holy Spirit will make your street a better place to live.
All Scripture quotes are from the New Revised Standard Version Bible, copyrighted, 1989 by the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the U.S.A., and is used by permission. All rights reserved.
I remember the days right before they left. I wandered around the house filled with a strange sort of pain and fear. I was already missing them terribly, my heart was beating fast and the tears held back just around the corner of my eyes. Plus, I had all sorts of question. They could not go because…I was not quite sure how to pay for gas other than at the pump. What if I could not just slide in my card. Who was I to talk to? What was I to say? Or, what do you do when you run out of checks; how do you get more? How much do you tip a waitress? How do you drive in downtown Omaha? I had all of these questions that I needed answered, but the questions were all basically the same question: How do I possibly live without you? I am going to be so alone.
Philip joins me in these questions as Jesus tells his disciples that he is going to leave. Jesus is going to the cross. Jesus is going to die. Jesus is going away to the Father, and the disciples will again be alone. Who is going to show them the ways of God? Who is going to direct them in what they should do and to whom they should give help and where they are to go? Jesus, you have not finished showing us everything! “Lord, show us the Father and we will be satisfied.” Show us God before you go. Jesus, do not go; we are going to be so alone!
Like every parent, my parents did not just up and move hundreds of miles away without somehow preparing for all of these unanswered questions. Just outside of my new bedroom, were a new set of parents who had graciously taken me in for the year. I moved in with a wonderful family and from them I learned lots of things such as: how to tie a tie. I learned how to sew a button back on my shirt. I learned that Aussie Shampoo will ruin my hair leaving it dry and like wire for more than a month. I learned all kinds of things from these gracious people. My parents were not stupid. They left me people right next to my bedroom door who would guide me in the same ways that they would.
Disciples of Christ, you too have not been left alone. The Holy Spirit, the paraklete in Greek, the advocate, the one who walks beside us, is right here with us. Jesus has not left us orphaned. Jesus has given us the gift of a next door neighbor! But, this is good next door neighbor. The Holy Spirit will not let its dog leave gifts in your lawn, the Holy Spirit will not cut down your apple tree, nor will the Holy Spirit be the drill sergeant of life next door.
The Holy Spirit is the one who will live beside you, walk beside you, love you, and remind you that you are God’s. The Holy Spirit will remind you of the Father, and of Jesus so that you will not go through life alone.
I am not sure that all Christians realize that they have a next door neighbor. Sure, they have been told that in sermons and such, but who listens to them…nice nap fests that they are. No, many Christians do not realize that they have a heavenly next door neighbor. They have let their property line bushes grow tall and thick and they cannot even see over the property line. The neighbor is still there of course. The overgrown bushes are not the neighbor’s fault. But, the bushes do allow us to feel lonely. We feel as if we have no gifts from God. We feel as if God has no use for us. We simple feel scared to try anything for the sake of the risen one, because we cannot see the encouragement and hear the wisdom from our neighbor.
But, if we allowed the bushes to be trimmed we would see that “the one who believes in [Jesus] will also do the works that [Jesus does] and, in fact, will do greater works than these...” There is no need to live in fear. There is no need to live as a sheltered Christian. The Spirit has taken up residence right next to us and will guide us in the ways and works of God.
Did you not hear Jesus say, “I will do whatever you ask in my name…If in my name you ask me for anything, I will do it.”? This is not a divine promise to grant you all of your wishes. It is much better than that. It is the divine expression of a parent that says, “I would do anything for you. You are not alone. You are not worthless. You are special. You are a gift to the world. You have gifts to share with the world, and I would do anything to make you and your gifts shine.”
The Holy Spirit has taken us residence next to you, and together you and the Holy Spirit will make your street a better place to live.
All Scripture quotes are from the New Revised Standard Version Bible, copyrighted, 1989 by the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the U.S.A., and is used by permission. All rights reserved.
Relfection on Revelation 21:1-6
A minister dies and, resplendent in his clerical collar and colorful robes, waits in line at the Pearly Gates. Just ahead of him is a guy dressed in sunglasses, a loud shirt, leather jacket, and jeans.
Saint Peter addresses this guy, "Who are you, so that I may know whether or not to admit you to the Kingdom of Heaven?"
The guy replies, "I'm Joe Green, taxi-driver, of Noo Yawk City." Saint Peter consults his list, smiles and says to the taxi-driver, "Take this silken robe and golden staff, and enter into the Kingdom."
So the taxi-driver enters Heaven with his robe and staff, and the minister is next in line. Without being asked, he proclaims, "I am Michael O'Connor, head pastor of Saint Mary's for the last forty-three years."
Saint Peter consults his list and says, "Take this cotton robe and wooden staff and enter the Kingdom of Heaven."
"Just a minute," says the preacher, "that man was a taxi-driver, and you issued him a silken robe and golden staff. But I get wood and cotton. How can this be?"
"Up here, we go by results," says Saint Peter. "While you preached, people slept -- while he drove, people prayed."
Ah yes, the “St. Peter and the Pearly Gate Jokes.” There are a million of these things, but they mostly all go the same way. Someone goes up to heaven, is given some sort of test at the gates of heaven, and either does or does not get in based on the comedic twist of the joke. Sometimes the people who get in are not the people who we would expect…sort of the comedic world’s version of “the first shall be last and the last shall be first;” such as in the joke about the resplendently dressed minister and the taxi driver…but other jokes agree completely on those who will not have any chance of getting into heaven. In fact, this high paid group of people would be lucky to even see the pearly gates in the first place. This group of people of course are: lawyers.
Did you know that heaven and hell are actually right next to each other?
They are separated by a big chain-link fence. Well, one day hell was having a big party and it got a little out of hand. God heard the ruckus and arrived to find his fence completely smashed by the wild partiers.
He called the devil over and said "Look, Satan, you have to rebuild this fence." Satan agreed. The next day God noticed that the devil had completely rebuilt the fence...but it was 2 feet further into heaven than before.
"Satan!" beckoned God. "You have to take that fence down and put it back where it belongs!"
"Yeah? What if I don't?" replied the devil.
"I'll sue you if I have to," answered God.
"Sure," laughed Satan. "Where are you going to find a lawyer?"
Not only do these jokes reassure us about who will and who will not get into heaven…certainly we will be the ones getting through the gates, but they also agree on one important claim; you have to do something good or answer something correctly in order to get into heaven. I know, I know, they are just jokes and people do not take them seriously…so chill Pastor Jira. That is true, I love telling these jokes as much as the next fella, but their very existence says something very fundamental about what we believe.
I recently saw this fundamental believe etched into stone in a student art gallery. The piece was beautiful. It was two human forms. One was struggling up the side of a mountain, grasping to climb even higher, and the other was on the top of the mountain, yet the figure still could not get high enough. The figure was still reaching further, into the air, not quite reaching what it was searching for. “The Human Struggle” read the placard next to the piece. The figures struggle to reach and grasp onto that which is the highest truth. Yet, even the figure that made it to the top, still grasped at air.
Most people will not believe you when you tell them that we do not go up to get to heaven. So convinced are we that heaven is above…so convinced are we that we must struggle to reach God, that we completely miss what the Bible has to say about God, and the new heavens and the new earth. Not surprisingly, but surprising to some, the Bible does not offer us the image seen in the jokes.
But, the Bible does offer us this:
Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth; for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away, and the sea was no more. And I saw the holy city, the new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband. And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, "See, the home of God is among mortals. He will dwell with them; they will be his peoples, and God himself will be with them; he will wipe every tear from their eyes. Death will be no more; mourning and crying and pain will be no more, for the first things have passed away."
Did you notice what happens here? Did you see the direction of things? The “new Jerusalem” comes down. And along with the city, God comes down to live with God’s people. The image harkens back to the old days, when the temple still existed in Jerusalem. The inner sanctuary of the temple was where God dwelled; it was where God lived. Seeing Jerusalem on the horizon as you came near was so exciting for the ancient Jews, not because it was a great and wonderful city, but because as you approached you knew you were coming close to God. You could literally see the temple where God was; God, who lived right there, dwelling right there, right here on earth with us. The ancients knew that you do not build temples to go up to God. God destroys such staircases to heaven, ever heard of the tower of Babel that God destroyed? You build temples for God because God comes down. God’s kingdom is and will always be right here…down here…and God will be our God and we shall be God’s people. God will walk with us. God will wipe the tears from our eyes.
You can climb as high as you wants, you can try as hard as you desire, but all that will happen is that you will reach the top and all you will grasp is air. You cannot climb or somehow work your way up to God. God is not there. God has chosen to come to us. We do not go up, God always comes down.
So what? Who cares? Maybe some of us are directionally challenged. What does this matter?
When you have tried and failed, and tried, and tried, and failed again and again and again, it matters when you here that you do not need to go up; God comes down to you.
When you try to make something of yourself, and someone always pushes you back down, it matters that God comes down.
When you have no control over the pain, it matters that God comes down.
When you are stopped by police and are blamed, not because you did anything wrong, but because you happen to have a little darker complexion, it matters that God comes down.
When you happen to be a lawyer, it matters that God comes down.
When God comes down, God’s kingdom comes along with. Divisions between people mean nothing in God’s kingdom, people are healed no matter what in God’s kingdom, and people are forgiven no matter what in God’s kingdom. How can we possibly forget the fact that God comes down when we celebrate it every December 25th? We do not go up to God, God came down to us in Jesus Christ and continues to come down today.
This is the great gift of the reformation! Listen to how Martin Luther phrases everything, “God created me;” “Jesus…is my Lord;” “I…cannot believe…but the Holy Spirit calls.” In all of those phrases it is God who does the action, God who does the saving, and God who gives the faith. We will only grasp at air when we try. But all hope is not lost. God will find God’s people and will live with them. For a world that seeks and never finds, this is a great gift. What an amazing word of grace. No wonder Martin Luther was willing to put his life on the line. It is beautiful word. Let us go out and share it!
All Scripture quotes are from the New Revised Standard Version Bible, copyrighted, 1989 by the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the U.S.A., and is used by permission. All rights reserved.
Saint Peter addresses this guy, "Who are you, so that I may know whether or not to admit you to the Kingdom of Heaven?"
The guy replies, "I'm Joe Green, taxi-driver, of Noo Yawk City." Saint Peter consults his list, smiles and says to the taxi-driver, "Take this silken robe and golden staff, and enter into the Kingdom."
So the taxi-driver enters Heaven with his robe and staff, and the minister is next in line. Without being asked, he proclaims, "I am Michael O'Connor, head pastor of Saint Mary's for the last forty-three years."
Saint Peter consults his list and says, "Take this cotton robe and wooden staff and enter the Kingdom of Heaven."
"Just a minute," says the preacher, "that man was a taxi-driver, and you issued him a silken robe and golden staff. But I get wood and cotton. How can this be?"
"Up here, we go by results," says Saint Peter. "While you preached, people slept -- while he drove, people prayed."
Ah yes, the “St. Peter and the Pearly Gate Jokes.” There are a million of these things, but they mostly all go the same way. Someone goes up to heaven, is given some sort of test at the gates of heaven, and either does or does not get in based on the comedic twist of the joke. Sometimes the people who get in are not the people who we would expect…sort of the comedic world’s version of “the first shall be last and the last shall be first;” such as in the joke about the resplendently dressed minister and the taxi driver…but other jokes agree completely on those who will not have any chance of getting into heaven. In fact, this high paid group of people would be lucky to even see the pearly gates in the first place. This group of people of course are: lawyers.
Did you know that heaven and hell are actually right next to each other?
They are separated by a big chain-link fence. Well, one day hell was having a big party and it got a little out of hand. God heard the ruckus and arrived to find his fence completely smashed by the wild partiers.
He called the devil over and said "Look, Satan, you have to rebuild this fence." Satan agreed. The next day God noticed that the devil had completely rebuilt the fence...but it was 2 feet further into heaven than before.
"Satan!" beckoned God. "You have to take that fence down and put it back where it belongs!"
"Yeah? What if I don't?" replied the devil.
"I'll sue you if I have to," answered God.
"Sure," laughed Satan. "Where are you going to find a lawyer?"
Not only do these jokes reassure us about who will and who will not get into heaven…certainly we will be the ones getting through the gates, but they also agree on one important claim; you have to do something good or answer something correctly in order to get into heaven. I know, I know, they are just jokes and people do not take them seriously…so chill Pastor Jira. That is true, I love telling these jokes as much as the next fella, but their very existence says something very fundamental about what we believe.
I recently saw this fundamental believe etched into stone in a student art gallery. The piece was beautiful. It was two human forms. One was struggling up the side of a mountain, grasping to climb even higher, and the other was on the top of the mountain, yet the figure still could not get high enough. The figure was still reaching further, into the air, not quite reaching what it was searching for. “The Human Struggle” read the placard next to the piece. The figures struggle to reach and grasp onto that which is the highest truth. Yet, even the figure that made it to the top, still grasped at air.
Most people will not believe you when you tell them that we do not go up to get to heaven. So convinced are we that heaven is above…so convinced are we that we must struggle to reach God, that we completely miss what the Bible has to say about God, and the new heavens and the new earth. Not surprisingly, but surprising to some, the Bible does not offer us the image seen in the jokes.
But, the Bible does offer us this:
Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth; for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away, and the sea was no more. And I saw the holy city, the new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband. And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, "See, the home of God is among mortals. He will dwell with them; they will be his peoples, and God himself will be with them; he will wipe every tear from their eyes. Death will be no more; mourning and crying and pain will be no more, for the first things have passed away."
Did you notice what happens here? Did you see the direction of things? The “new Jerusalem” comes down. And along with the city, God comes down to live with God’s people. The image harkens back to the old days, when the temple still existed in Jerusalem. The inner sanctuary of the temple was where God dwelled; it was where God lived. Seeing Jerusalem on the horizon as you came near was so exciting for the ancient Jews, not because it was a great and wonderful city, but because as you approached you knew you were coming close to God. You could literally see the temple where God was; God, who lived right there, dwelling right there, right here on earth with us. The ancients knew that you do not build temples to go up to God. God destroys such staircases to heaven, ever heard of the tower of Babel that God destroyed? You build temples for God because God comes down. God’s kingdom is and will always be right here…down here…and God will be our God and we shall be God’s people. God will walk with us. God will wipe the tears from our eyes.
You can climb as high as you wants, you can try as hard as you desire, but all that will happen is that you will reach the top and all you will grasp is air. You cannot climb or somehow work your way up to God. God is not there. God has chosen to come to us. We do not go up, God always comes down.
So what? Who cares? Maybe some of us are directionally challenged. What does this matter?
When you have tried and failed, and tried, and tried, and failed again and again and again, it matters when you here that you do not need to go up; God comes down to you.
When you try to make something of yourself, and someone always pushes you back down, it matters that God comes down.
When you have no control over the pain, it matters that God comes down.
When you are stopped by police and are blamed, not because you did anything wrong, but because you happen to have a little darker complexion, it matters that God comes down.
When you happen to be a lawyer, it matters that God comes down.
When God comes down, God’s kingdom comes along with. Divisions between people mean nothing in God’s kingdom, people are healed no matter what in God’s kingdom, and people are forgiven no matter what in God’s kingdom. How can we possibly forget the fact that God comes down when we celebrate it every December 25th? We do not go up to God, God came down to us in Jesus Christ and continues to come down today.
This is the great gift of the reformation! Listen to how Martin Luther phrases everything, “God created me;” “Jesus…is my Lord;” “I…cannot believe…but the Holy Spirit calls.” In all of those phrases it is God who does the action, God who does the saving, and God who gives the faith. We will only grasp at air when we try. But all hope is not lost. God will find God’s people and will live with them. For a world that seeks and never finds, this is a great gift. What an amazing word of grace. No wonder Martin Luther was willing to put his life on the line. It is beautiful word. Let us go out and share it!
All Scripture quotes are from the New Revised Standard Version Bible, copyrighted, 1989 by the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the U.S.A., and is used by permission. All rights reserved.
Monday, April 19, 2010
Reflection On John 21:1-19
This story is just a ridiculous story. Really, how can anyone take this thing seriously? First up, we have Peter. He is continuing his losing streak against the beloved disciple. Did you not know they were competing? The beloved disciple thus far has beaten Peter to the empty tomb (even though Peter started first), he beat Peter by a long shot in having resurrection faith, and now he beats Peter to recognizing the Lord who is standing far from their fishing boat on the shore. Oh, the beloved disciple of Jesus Christ; the disciple who laid his head on Jesus breast, the disciple who Jesus loved above the others, the disciple who Peter is going to be beat, literally, if he does not stop making Peter look like an idiot.
Unfortunately for Peter, he does not need too much help in the “looking like an idiot” department. The guy is standing in a boat, in the sea, completely naked, fishing. Need I say more. He just earned his idiot badge right there. Just give the guy a six pack, stick him on the Susquehanna, and he would be a local.
Wait though, I do need to say more. Did you notice that it was fine for Peter to stand naked in front of the entire world on the boat, but he just had to get dressed so that he could jump into the murky water to go see Jesus? I bet you did not know this but, because of this yahoo, all pastors are required to shower with their clerics on before they go see Jesus on Sunday mornings. I bet you did not know that. Well, I have to admit, that is not true. I shower with my cleric on every Sunday morning because I still have not figured out how to turn on our new-fangled, space aged washing machine.
Ridiculous! This whole story is ridiculous and funny. It is a funny, funny story; like when Jesus first comes onto the scene after the disciples have been fishing for likely more than 12 hours. The disciples are exhausted and frustrated, and some guy…they did not recognize Jesus…hollers out to them, “put your nets out on the right side of the boat.”
“Oh, duh! The right side of the boat, who would have thought to switch to the other side of the boat after twelve hours of casting the net into the water?” (Sarcastically)
Oh, and then the funniest part of it all, when Jesus says to Peter:
Very truly, I tell you, when you were younger, you used to fasten your own belt and to go wherever you wished. But when you grow old, you will stretch out your hands, and someone else will fasten a belt around you and take you where you do not wish to go." (He said this to indicate the kind of death by which he would glorify God.) After this he said to him, "Follow me."
Ha! That is so…not really funny at all. “Peter, someone is going to kill you because you follow me,” is what Jesus is saying. The words sound ridiculous, but they certainly are not funny. This ridiculous and funny story has suddenly taken a sharp turn toward a cliff, and, I am not sure that I want to go there. I am not sure that I want to think about being murdered for my beliefs. Why do we not just go back to the funny parts? Do we really need to think about the cost of discipleship? Do we really need to consider the dangers of living a true life of faith? I think that I need some more humor.
After years and years of dealing with families near or during death there is one truth that I have learned, death and humor were born to go hand in hand. A person may be facing certain death, but that does not stop them from remarking that they "cannot wait to get to the coroner’s office, I have been dying to finally lose some weight."
Death has such a heavy hand and can offer such a strong blow that we need a gift that is equally powerful so that we can face it. Humor is that gift. It is God’s gift to us. It allows us to put death in its correct position; death may touch us, but it cannot control us. Joy can and will get the upper hand. Death cannot hold us down. We laugh in the face of death. We laugh in the face of the fact that our faith may get us precisely where it got our Savior: death on the cross.
If it were not for laughter, we just might not stretch out our neck for a stranger. It would be easy to simply play it safe: avoid all danger, avoid all strangers, stay at home, never allow your children to explore or help anyone. Death can frighten us into inaction. Death can frighten us into safety. But, I am not sure that Jesus is primarily interested in our safety. After-all he did go to the cross to save the world. That probably would not be the most prudent action one could take. He asks Peter to do the same. He asks Peter to follow. And, he asks us to do the same. He asks us to follow. I hate to say it, but Jesus is not interested in our safety, Jesus is interested in making sure people are fed, at peace, free from tyranny, and completely loved. This is not safe work.
Just consider, would blacks have the freedoms that they do if Martin Luther King Jr. and Rosa Parks had simply played it safe? No, but they had faith, they had love for others, and they had laughter. Could women and children in war-torn regions of the Congo find safety and nourishment if their missionaries and aid workers were primarily concerned about being safe? No, but those missionaries and aid workers who venture into danger have faith, have love for strangers, and have laughter. Can our children stand up to bullies and defend the weak if they are primarily concerned about their safety? No, but they have faith, they have love for the outcast, and they have laughter.
So, when Jesus seeks you out, and asks you to follow, with death hovering above the water, make sure to put on your finest tux before you dive in. Does it make any sense? No, but it will keep a smile on your face. As Jesus sends you out, into dangers unknown, may he fill you with good humor as you dare to serve in his name.
All Scripture quotes are from the New Revised Standard Version Bible, copyrighted, 1989 by the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the U.S.A., and is used by permission. All rights reserved.
Unfortunately for Peter, he does not need too much help in the “looking like an idiot” department. The guy is standing in a boat, in the sea, completely naked, fishing. Need I say more. He just earned his idiot badge right there. Just give the guy a six pack, stick him on the Susquehanna, and he would be a local.
Wait though, I do need to say more. Did you notice that it was fine for Peter to stand naked in front of the entire world on the boat, but he just had to get dressed so that he could jump into the murky water to go see Jesus? I bet you did not know this but, because of this yahoo, all pastors are required to shower with their clerics on before they go see Jesus on Sunday mornings. I bet you did not know that. Well, I have to admit, that is not true. I shower with my cleric on every Sunday morning because I still have not figured out how to turn on our new-fangled, space aged washing machine.
Ridiculous! This whole story is ridiculous and funny. It is a funny, funny story; like when Jesus first comes onto the scene after the disciples have been fishing for likely more than 12 hours. The disciples are exhausted and frustrated, and some guy…they did not recognize Jesus…hollers out to them, “put your nets out on the right side of the boat.”
“Oh, duh! The right side of the boat, who would have thought to switch to the other side of the boat after twelve hours of casting the net into the water?” (Sarcastically)
Oh, and then the funniest part of it all, when Jesus says to Peter:
Very truly, I tell you, when you were younger, you used to fasten your own belt and to go wherever you wished. But when you grow old, you will stretch out your hands, and someone else will fasten a belt around you and take you where you do not wish to go." (He said this to indicate the kind of death by which he would glorify God.) After this he said to him, "Follow me."
Ha! That is so…not really funny at all. “Peter, someone is going to kill you because you follow me,” is what Jesus is saying. The words sound ridiculous, but they certainly are not funny. This ridiculous and funny story has suddenly taken a sharp turn toward a cliff, and, I am not sure that I want to go there. I am not sure that I want to think about being murdered for my beliefs. Why do we not just go back to the funny parts? Do we really need to think about the cost of discipleship? Do we really need to consider the dangers of living a true life of faith? I think that I need some more humor.
After years and years of dealing with families near or during death there is one truth that I have learned, death and humor were born to go hand in hand. A person may be facing certain death, but that does not stop them from remarking that they "cannot wait to get to the coroner’s office, I have been dying to finally lose some weight."
Death has such a heavy hand and can offer such a strong blow that we need a gift that is equally powerful so that we can face it. Humor is that gift. It is God’s gift to us. It allows us to put death in its correct position; death may touch us, but it cannot control us. Joy can and will get the upper hand. Death cannot hold us down. We laugh in the face of death. We laugh in the face of the fact that our faith may get us precisely where it got our Savior: death on the cross.
If it were not for laughter, we just might not stretch out our neck for a stranger. It would be easy to simply play it safe: avoid all danger, avoid all strangers, stay at home, never allow your children to explore or help anyone. Death can frighten us into inaction. Death can frighten us into safety. But, I am not sure that Jesus is primarily interested in our safety. After-all he did go to the cross to save the world. That probably would not be the most prudent action one could take. He asks Peter to do the same. He asks Peter to follow. And, he asks us to do the same. He asks us to follow. I hate to say it, but Jesus is not interested in our safety, Jesus is interested in making sure people are fed, at peace, free from tyranny, and completely loved. This is not safe work.
Just consider, would blacks have the freedoms that they do if Martin Luther King Jr. and Rosa Parks had simply played it safe? No, but they had faith, they had love for others, and they had laughter. Could women and children in war-torn regions of the Congo find safety and nourishment if their missionaries and aid workers were primarily concerned about being safe? No, but those missionaries and aid workers who venture into danger have faith, have love for strangers, and have laughter. Can our children stand up to bullies and defend the weak if they are primarily concerned about their safety? No, but they have faith, they have love for the outcast, and they have laughter.
So, when Jesus seeks you out, and asks you to follow, with death hovering above the water, make sure to put on your finest tux before you dive in. Does it make any sense? No, but it will keep a smile on your face. As Jesus sends you out, into dangers unknown, may he fill you with good humor as you dare to serve in his name.
All Scripture quotes are from the New Revised Standard Version Bible, copyrighted, 1989 by the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the U.S.A., and is used by permission. All rights reserved.
Sunday, April 11, 2010
Reflection on John 20:19-31
"Unless I see the mark of the nails in his hands, and put my finger in the mark of the nails and my hand in his side, I will not believe," Thomas sternly retorts to the other disciples when they harass him with the message they had seen the risen Lord.
“But, he was right here. He came right through the locked door and gave us his peace.”
“I told you, I will not believe,” Thomas is emphatic.
I know that your English Bible says that Thomas doubted and that years and years of biblical interpretation has labeled him as “doubting Thomas.” But, this is not doubt that he is expressing. Thomas is not wavering in his faith and trust. No, Thomas is certain. The appropriate name for Thomas would be Thomas the unbeliever; Thomas the realist.
Thomas is under no delusions. He knows that the one who he trusted and loved is gone. He is dead and gone and Thomas has gotten on with his life. He is not locking himself away in the other disciple's little room of fear. He is out in the world getting on with things. He is rebuilding his life. He is not trapped in a tomb of fear.
And now these cowards who have locked themselves away in fear and self-pity are trying to drag him back into their delusions. They are trying to drag him back into the locked room. Well, he is not going to fall for it. He is not going to let it happen again. He will not be hurt again by losing someone he loves and trusts. He will not dare to make himself have hope again. He will not open himself to such pain again. He will not believe. He will not believe. "Unless I see the mark of the nails in his hands, and put my finger in the mark of the nails and my hand in his side, I will not believe."
Why can’t the dead just stay dead? When they don’t, it throws everything out of whack. You cannot rebuild a life when the dead refuse to stay dead.
I once heard the story of a girl whose life was continually thrown into turmoil every birthday until she was 30 years old, because on her birthday, her dad would give her a video-taped message from her mother who died way too soon. It seemed like a good idea at the time; tape some messages so that her daughter could have the wisdom of her mother years after the cancer had taken her life. Well, it was not a good idea. Each year the daughter would watch the new tape and every year the daughter would feel the pain of her mother's death again. Even worse, when her mother would tell her to marry a certain type of guy, go to a specific school for college, or choose a specific career, the daughter could not fight back with her mother and change her mother’s mind. She felt guilty for every decision that she made in defiance of her mother. Why can’t the dead just stay dead? It throws everything into chaos if they do not. They should just die and stay in their tombs.
Only when the dead stay in their tombs can people like we and Thomas build our tombs and stay there.
A life devoid of hope is indeed a tomb. It cannot allow God to do the unexpected. It cannot allow grace to change the order of the world. It cannot allow our Savior to come back from the dead. As horrible as missing out on those things may seem, the tomb of realism is a mighty fine tomb because it is predictable. The stone walls are the same tomorrow as they are today. You can count on a tomb. It will not cause you to love and trust someone only to lose them.
But, do not let yourselves be mistaken. It is a tomb. Tombs by definition do not hold life. Life cannot grow and flourish in a tomb. We are not made to live in tombs.
And, that is the problem; if we have closed ourselves away in a tomb, where there is no life, how can we possibly get ourselves out? You do not escape tombs. You cannot just decide one day that you are going to leave your tomb to go get a soda from the Dandy. Whether it be a tomb of pain and loss or a tomb of unbelief or a tomb for the dead, a tomb is a tomb. Only the dead lie in tombs, and the dead cannot escape.
It is a good thing that locked doors of fear are not an issue for the risen Jesus, who just slips right through and offers his peace and his breath of forgiving life. It is a good thing that sealed tombs in no way hinder our risen Lord.
Jesus bursts right into Thomas’ tomb of unbelief and shows him the scars in his hands and side, just as Thomas needed. It is a good thing that even a tomb cannot hold Jesus down because it means that there is no place in the universe and no place in anyone’s life where new life cannot flourish. “My Lord, my God” Thomas answers him with new hope filling his life.
Today, that new hope, the new life that cannot be locked away by a tomb, reaches to us across the centuries and Jesus speaks directly to us. “[Thomas] Have you believed because you have seen me? Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have come to believe." Jesus' blessing cracks the edges of our own tombs open. It is not much, but it lets enough light in for hope to grow in even those of us who have not seen the Lord with our own eyes. It may just be a crack of light in our tomb of unbelief, but a crack is all Jesus needs to set us free. Blessed are you who have not seen and yet have come to believe.
I guess that tombs do not last forever after-all.
“But, he was right here. He came right through the locked door and gave us his peace.”
“I told you, I will not believe,” Thomas is emphatic.
I know that your English Bible says that Thomas doubted and that years and years of biblical interpretation has labeled him as “doubting Thomas.” But, this is not doubt that he is expressing. Thomas is not wavering in his faith and trust. No, Thomas is certain. The appropriate name for Thomas would be Thomas the unbeliever; Thomas the realist.
Thomas is under no delusions. He knows that the one who he trusted and loved is gone. He is dead and gone and Thomas has gotten on with his life. He is not locking himself away in the other disciple's little room of fear. He is out in the world getting on with things. He is rebuilding his life. He is not trapped in a tomb of fear.
And now these cowards who have locked themselves away in fear and self-pity are trying to drag him back into their delusions. They are trying to drag him back into the locked room. Well, he is not going to fall for it. He is not going to let it happen again. He will not be hurt again by losing someone he loves and trusts. He will not dare to make himself have hope again. He will not open himself to such pain again. He will not believe. He will not believe. "Unless I see the mark of the nails in his hands, and put my finger in the mark of the nails and my hand in his side, I will not believe."
Why can’t the dead just stay dead? When they don’t, it throws everything out of whack. You cannot rebuild a life when the dead refuse to stay dead.
I once heard the story of a girl whose life was continually thrown into turmoil every birthday until she was 30 years old, because on her birthday, her dad would give her a video-taped message from her mother who died way too soon. It seemed like a good idea at the time; tape some messages so that her daughter could have the wisdom of her mother years after the cancer had taken her life. Well, it was not a good idea. Each year the daughter would watch the new tape and every year the daughter would feel the pain of her mother's death again. Even worse, when her mother would tell her to marry a certain type of guy, go to a specific school for college, or choose a specific career, the daughter could not fight back with her mother and change her mother’s mind. She felt guilty for every decision that she made in defiance of her mother. Why can’t the dead just stay dead? It throws everything into chaos if they do not. They should just die and stay in their tombs.
Only when the dead stay in their tombs can people like we and Thomas build our tombs and stay there.
A life devoid of hope is indeed a tomb. It cannot allow God to do the unexpected. It cannot allow grace to change the order of the world. It cannot allow our Savior to come back from the dead. As horrible as missing out on those things may seem, the tomb of realism is a mighty fine tomb because it is predictable. The stone walls are the same tomorrow as they are today. You can count on a tomb. It will not cause you to love and trust someone only to lose them.
But, do not let yourselves be mistaken. It is a tomb. Tombs by definition do not hold life. Life cannot grow and flourish in a tomb. We are not made to live in tombs.
And, that is the problem; if we have closed ourselves away in a tomb, where there is no life, how can we possibly get ourselves out? You do not escape tombs. You cannot just decide one day that you are going to leave your tomb to go get a soda from the Dandy. Whether it be a tomb of pain and loss or a tomb of unbelief or a tomb for the dead, a tomb is a tomb. Only the dead lie in tombs, and the dead cannot escape.
It is a good thing that locked doors of fear are not an issue for the risen Jesus, who just slips right through and offers his peace and his breath of forgiving life. It is a good thing that sealed tombs in no way hinder our risen Lord.
Jesus bursts right into Thomas’ tomb of unbelief and shows him the scars in his hands and side, just as Thomas needed. It is a good thing that even a tomb cannot hold Jesus down because it means that there is no place in the universe and no place in anyone’s life where new life cannot flourish. “My Lord, my God” Thomas answers him with new hope filling his life.
Today, that new hope, the new life that cannot be locked away by a tomb, reaches to us across the centuries and Jesus speaks directly to us. “[Thomas] Have you believed because you have seen me? Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have come to believe." Jesus' blessing cracks the edges of our own tombs open. It is not much, but it lets enough light in for hope to grow in even those of us who have not seen the Lord with our own eyes. It may just be a crack of light in our tomb of unbelief, but a crack is all Jesus needs to set us free. Blessed are you who have not seen and yet have come to believe.
I guess that tombs do not last forever after-all.
Reflection on Luke 24:1-12
I vividly remember an Easter dinner spent with some friends of the family. Just as we were settling ourselves around the kitchen table to chat while the meal cooked, the mother of the household came in quickly and declared to everyone the weatherman on the radio had just announced that there was going to be a huge, late snowfall. She said that the boys needed to go out to the barn and get the snow plow back onto the tractor ASAP. That announcement elicited a two second pause in the conversation, and then it resumed with the swift action of raised coffee cups to sipping mouths. No one did anything.
Just minutes later, the Father came storming into the house, announced the oncoming storm, and told the boys to get out into the barn and get the tractor ready. “I’m not going to let any of my guests get stuck here,” he stated authoritatively. And, immediately the boys were putting on their coats and were out the door. You can imagine the mother’s reaction. The mother’s jaw dropped to the floor as she stared at the father. Confused, the father replied, “What did I do?”
I am sorry, but women, is that not just how it goes. You say something and it is considered to be about as important as Groundhog’s Day, but a man says the same thing and it is like Jesus has risen from the dead! Well, you can take a little comfort from the fact that Mary Magdalene, Joanna, Mary the mother of James, and the other women…yes these, the first evangelists in the world, were so important to the early church that they get to bear for eternity the name, “the other woman…” you can take a little comfort that no one believed them even when someone did rise from the dead.
Mary Magdalene, Joanna, Mary the mother of James, and the other women were the first evangelists and the first preachers in the world for the Christian church, and they never hesitated in that job. As soon as the two angels in dazzling clothes approached the women…well I suppose that they may not have been angels, the Bible does not say that, they may have been just a couple of lost choir members bumbling around… whoever they were, as soon as these lost choir members in their white robes told the women that Jesus was not dead, but had risen, they were off to share the good news…that no one believed.
Not only did the disciples not believe the women’s story and brush them off as insignificant, but they considered the whole story a bunch of manure. No, the original Greek Bible does not always use family friendly language, but that just proves the point even more of how utterly ridiculous the women’s story seemed. “People raised from the dead, yeah right! What a load of manure.” People raised from the dead is rediculous. Death is anything but.
“In this world nothing can be said to be certain, except death and taxes.”
“Death is a natural part of life.”
“We all labor against our own cure; for death is the cure of all disease.”
“Only death has the last word.”
In this world, the women’s words are crazy! They go against the very law of nature. Death is death. It is the end. After death, there is no more. Death is the one thing that we can count on. Anna Carter Florence, a biblical commentator, once shared the sentiment, "if the dead do not stay dead, what can you count on?"
What the women are saying is illogical.
“People do not raise from the dead. And, in any case, we did not see it. It cannot be true.”
The only logical response is unbelief. Therefore, we keep to what we already know to be true, death.
Wow, did you hear what I just said? Did it sound as bad out there as it did right here? “Therefore, we keep to what we already know to be true, death.” Wow, is there not something a little pathetic in that? It is a life of just getting by from one day to the next because we all know it will come to an end soon. It is a life of just living paycheck to paycheck. It is a life of just getting from one episode of American Idol to the next.
Wow, have we really resigned ourselves to death? Is it really healthy to keep Jesus in the tomb? Is it really healthy to live there in the tomb with him? Really? Is death really where we will find our answers? Is death really something to construct our lives upon?
The lost choir members in white have a question for us…alright, the angels in the tomb have a question for us, "Why do you look for the living among the dead?”
People’s lives are not changed by a monotonous lifestyle of living paycheck to paycheck. People’s lives do not flourish if death has the last word. Are you really certain that death has the last word? "Really? How can you be so sure?" Jesus’ resurrection forces us to reconsider these deep beliefs of our lives. Yes, death is real, but it is not the last word. In Jesus, life gets the last word.
What if? What if the women are not full of it? What if death is not the last word? What might a life that is not focused on death look like? What might a life with Jesus look like, if the women are right that is, and in Jesus life gets the last word? Would life have meaning? Would it build up rather than tear down?
I am not sure that I can tell you for certain, but is it not worth checking out anyway? Go ahead and run beside Peter, the one disciple who listened to the women…you can tell he was married, he actually listened to the women, smart man…go ahead and run with him, and find out what this life in Christ is about for ourselves? What could it hurt? Certainly, it cannot be worse than death. Why not seek life with Christ? Christ has already claimed you for life with him! What is there to lose?
Just minutes later, the Father came storming into the house, announced the oncoming storm, and told the boys to get out into the barn and get the tractor ready. “I’m not going to let any of my guests get stuck here,” he stated authoritatively. And, immediately the boys were putting on their coats and were out the door. You can imagine the mother’s reaction. The mother’s jaw dropped to the floor as she stared at the father. Confused, the father replied, “What did I do?”
I am sorry, but women, is that not just how it goes. You say something and it is considered to be about as important as Groundhog’s Day, but a man says the same thing and it is like Jesus has risen from the dead! Well, you can take a little comfort from the fact that Mary Magdalene, Joanna, Mary the mother of James, and the other women…yes these, the first evangelists in the world, were so important to the early church that they get to bear for eternity the name, “the other woman…” you can take a little comfort that no one believed them even when someone did rise from the dead.
Mary Magdalene, Joanna, Mary the mother of James, and the other women were the first evangelists and the first preachers in the world for the Christian church, and they never hesitated in that job. As soon as the two angels in dazzling clothes approached the women…well I suppose that they may not have been angels, the Bible does not say that, they may have been just a couple of lost choir members bumbling around… whoever they were, as soon as these lost choir members in their white robes told the women that Jesus was not dead, but had risen, they were off to share the good news…that no one believed.
Not only did the disciples not believe the women’s story and brush them off as insignificant, but they considered the whole story a bunch of manure. No, the original Greek Bible does not always use family friendly language, but that just proves the point even more of how utterly ridiculous the women’s story seemed. “People raised from the dead, yeah right! What a load of manure.” People raised from the dead is rediculous. Death is anything but.
“In this world nothing can be said to be certain, except death and taxes.”
“Death is a natural part of life.”
“We all labor against our own cure; for death is the cure of all disease.”
“Only death has the last word.”
In this world, the women’s words are crazy! They go against the very law of nature. Death is death. It is the end. After death, there is no more. Death is the one thing that we can count on. Anna Carter Florence, a biblical commentator, once shared the sentiment, "if the dead do not stay dead, what can you count on?"
What the women are saying is illogical.
“People do not raise from the dead. And, in any case, we did not see it. It cannot be true.”
The only logical response is unbelief. Therefore, we keep to what we already know to be true, death.
Wow, did you hear what I just said? Did it sound as bad out there as it did right here? “Therefore, we keep to what we already know to be true, death.” Wow, is there not something a little pathetic in that? It is a life of just getting by from one day to the next because we all know it will come to an end soon. It is a life of just living paycheck to paycheck. It is a life of just getting from one episode of American Idol to the next.
Wow, have we really resigned ourselves to death? Is it really healthy to keep Jesus in the tomb? Is it really healthy to live there in the tomb with him? Really? Is death really where we will find our answers? Is death really something to construct our lives upon?
The lost choir members in white have a question for us…alright, the angels in the tomb have a question for us, "Why do you look for the living among the dead?”
People’s lives are not changed by a monotonous lifestyle of living paycheck to paycheck. People’s lives do not flourish if death has the last word. Are you really certain that death has the last word? "Really? How can you be so sure?" Jesus’ resurrection forces us to reconsider these deep beliefs of our lives. Yes, death is real, but it is not the last word. In Jesus, life gets the last word.
What if? What if the women are not full of it? What if death is not the last word? What might a life that is not focused on death look like? What might a life with Jesus look like, if the women are right that is, and in Jesus life gets the last word? Would life have meaning? Would it build up rather than tear down?
I am not sure that I can tell you for certain, but is it not worth checking out anyway? Go ahead and run beside Peter, the one disciple who listened to the women…you can tell he was married, he actually listened to the women, smart man…go ahead and run with him, and find out what this life in Christ is about for ourselves? What could it hurt? Certainly, it cannot be worse than death. Why not seek life with Christ? Christ has already claimed you for life with him! What is there to lose?
Reflection on John 20:1-18
Darkness. The sky was dark when Jesus let out his last breath. The morning was dark when Mary reached the tomb. Mary’s soul was dark when she saw that the body of her beloved Jesus was gone. Life was dark when the hope of the disciples was put to death for good. Life was dark. It was dark.
Darkness is a problem in life. Danger can lurk in the dark; you cannot see to protect yourself. You are exposed; naked. You can get lost in the dark. It is impossible to see your way out of a problem when in the dark. It is interesting that the perspectives of people whose lives have gone dark and therefore attempt suicide are described as having tunnel vision. Their vision is limited, they can see only one solution. Things have gone dark for them. Darkness is a problem in life.
Even though the morning was probably starting to break, the darkness had completely overcome Mary. Heartbroken, she searched for her Savior in the garden. She looked and looked, she went and got the disciples to help her, she even asked the gardener. Her life was dark. She was convinced that her Savior was gone. It was so dark that she did not even see Jesus. In her darkness, she could not see through the exterior of the gardener into his soul. She could not see that her own beloved Savior was standing right next to her.
What do you do when you are lost in the dark? What do you do when you do not even recognize your own salvation? I have known people who cry from being lonely all while family is gathered around them. What do you do when the darkness penetrates so deep that you cannot see the love that is right in front of your eyes?
Sometimes your eyes will deceive you. Sometimes you will be convinced of one thing, when another thing is all together true. Legal courts have discovered that eye-witness testimony is an extremely poor way to get at the truth. Statistically speaking, eye witnesses hinder the investigation of truth more than they help. The eyes deceive. The eyes see things that are not there. Or, they fail to see what is there. Sometimes, they cannot see Jesus and let you know that the one who created, saves, and redeems you is standing right in front of you. Sometimes they allow you to be lost and lonely when the one who would die for you is right there with you.
When darkness has overtaken your sight completely, Jesus does have one way of getting at you…one way of saving you from the darkness; he speaks your name. In the scriptures we recall that, "He calls his own sheep by name... and the sheep follow him because they know his voice."
“Mary,” Jesus says through the darkness.
Indeed, the sheep know the voice of the shepherd, and Mary knows the voice of the one who loves her. You cannot forget the voice of someone so close to you when you hear your name lovingly spoken. It was the Word after-all that created the heavens and the earth. It was the Word that became flesh and lived among us. And, it is by the Word that we were given a name. When we hear our name, we recognize our Savior.
Seeing is not believing. It is through listening that we will find the truth. It is through listening that we will remember whose we are. It is through listening that we will hear our names woven through the fabric of life. It is through listening that Christ will pull us from the darkness into newness of life. Take time to listen for the Word. Take time to listen for Christ. Your name is being spoken. And, God speaks your name beautifully, you precious child of God.
Darkness is a problem in life. Danger can lurk in the dark; you cannot see to protect yourself. You are exposed; naked. You can get lost in the dark. It is impossible to see your way out of a problem when in the dark. It is interesting that the perspectives of people whose lives have gone dark and therefore attempt suicide are described as having tunnel vision. Their vision is limited, they can see only one solution. Things have gone dark for them. Darkness is a problem in life.
Even though the morning was probably starting to break, the darkness had completely overcome Mary. Heartbroken, she searched for her Savior in the garden. She looked and looked, she went and got the disciples to help her, she even asked the gardener. Her life was dark. She was convinced that her Savior was gone. It was so dark that she did not even see Jesus. In her darkness, she could not see through the exterior of the gardener into his soul. She could not see that her own beloved Savior was standing right next to her.
What do you do when you are lost in the dark? What do you do when you do not even recognize your own salvation? I have known people who cry from being lonely all while family is gathered around them. What do you do when the darkness penetrates so deep that you cannot see the love that is right in front of your eyes?
Sometimes your eyes will deceive you. Sometimes you will be convinced of one thing, when another thing is all together true. Legal courts have discovered that eye-witness testimony is an extremely poor way to get at the truth. Statistically speaking, eye witnesses hinder the investigation of truth more than they help. The eyes deceive. The eyes see things that are not there. Or, they fail to see what is there. Sometimes, they cannot see Jesus and let you know that the one who created, saves, and redeems you is standing right in front of you. Sometimes they allow you to be lost and lonely when the one who would die for you is right there with you.
When darkness has overtaken your sight completely, Jesus does have one way of getting at you…one way of saving you from the darkness; he speaks your name. In the scriptures we recall that, "He calls his own sheep by name... and the sheep follow him because they know his voice."
“Mary,” Jesus says through the darkness.
Indeed, the sheep know the voice of the shepherd, and Mary knows the voice of the one who loves her. You cannot forget the voice of someone so close to you when you hear your name lovingly spoken. It was the Word after-all that created the heavens and the earth. It was the Word that became flesh and lived among us. And, it is by the Word that we were given a name. When we hear our name, we recognize our Savior.
Seeing is not believing. It is through listening that we will find the truth. It is through listening that we will remember whose we are. It is through listening that we will hear our names woven through the fabric of life. It is through listening that Christ will pull us from the darkness into newness of life. Take time to listen for the Word. Take time to listen for Christ. Your name is being spoken. And, God speaks your name beautifully, you precious child of God.
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