Truly Satisfied

    How many of you made New Year’s resolutions this year?  How many of you have already broken them?  How many of you didn’t even bother making New Year’s resolutions figuring you would break them anyway?  Yeah, I’m guilty of that last one.

    Among the many things I find fascinating about the human condition is that we seem to be caught in this tug of war–a tug of war between forces which try to tell us “you are perfect just the way you are” and forces which tell us “you will never be happy or satisfied until you change and do this.”  Perhaps you have not noticed this trend in our society and culture, but I assure you, it is there.

    I mean, you don’t have to go very far to hear voices saying things like, “I don’t have to change anything about myself.  I’m fine just as I am.”  Or “You don’t have the right to tell me what to do, I can do whatever I want as long as I’m not hurting anyone.”  If you scroll through the news feeds any given week, you will see at least a story or two about accepting all sorts of body types; accepting people no matter what color they are; accepting people no matter their religion; or accepting people no matter their sexual orientation.  These things are front and center, a lot.

    And yet...even though this is being articulated over and over and over, we are also constantly bombarded with advertisements and even stories which tell us the exact opposite.  I mean for every story on accepting your body type, you probably see two or three stories about appropriate diets; what foods will get you a flat belly; what exercises will tone all your muscles.  For every story you read about how women are beautiful just the way they are, there are more than enough ads out there trying to sell make up and other items to cover up flaws.  Men are challenged to be rugged, handsome, and well cut while at the same time being caring, compassionate, and “in touch with their feminine side.”  And we can’t seem to escape this.  We cannot seem to get out of this back and forth, back and forth reality of folks telling us we are okay and fine; and then other voices telling us we need to improve ourselves and get better.  It can be maddening.

    Those of you who remember Mark Chapman remember that he was a poet, and in one of his books of poetry, he wrote this poem entitled Dis-satisfaction

Take a look–I’ve got it all
A great wife, health
Bank account that’s not small
Yet what is that sporadic, niggling burr
that nestles underneath my saddle?
Is it the ebbing of the physical
or a flaw in my gear box?
Maybe nature’s perverse trick to ruffle my feathers
Or one last long squall before the water calms.
I wrestle with this wisp of unease
It pins me more than not
A twinge of craziness asks
Am I a gerbil on a treadmill?
A captive in a cosmic joke?
A malcontent without a cause?
Is my chain being yanked because I care?
Maybe it is a plague of self absorption?
Blind faith would–could–be a lifeline
But for whatever reason no solace there.
Is the question unanswerable?
A maddening changing of the guard
Truth unacceptable
An accelerating slide down a slope
To a place I don’t want to go.
    What was Mark saying in that poem?  I think, he was saying that despite all the things in his life that he had; despite having wealth and love and possessions; despite living the American dream, there was still something nagging at him.  There was still something causing him discomfort.  There was still something eating at him which could not find satisfaction.

    I think all of us know this feeling.  I think all of us have that gnawing deep in our core–for despite all we have and every time we’ve been told that we are fine just the way we are, we don’t believe it.  We don’t think we have achieved any sort of perfection.  There is still something within us that desires transformation, but we don’t often know what that transformation is.  “Blind faith would–could–be a lifeline, but for whatever reason, no solace there.”

      Here we enter an interesting twist in Mark’s poem, and in the world around us.  For we in the church proclaim a path to deal with such dissatisfaction.  We in the church proclaim a path to solve this back and forth bouncing between feeling fine about ourselves and yet knowing there is something missing.  We in the church believe we have that answer, and I would argue it’s not blind.  It’s tangible, but I will get there in a minute.

    First, I would like to say what the answer is not.  The answer is not come and see what our church is doing.  The answer is not come and see how well our pastor preaches.  The answer is not come and see all of our programs that we have for youth.  The answer is not come and see how good a people we are.  The answer is not come and see all the good things we do.  The answer is not come and see us.

    That might sound strange to your ears–especially since I have been known in my previous years to tell you that we should be doing all sorts of things, and that when people see us doing good things, they will want to do those things too, and then they will join the church.  (How’s that for a run-on sentence!!!)  Yes, I have said such things in the past, but I was wrong.  People do not have life changing experiences–experiences which literally transform a person inwardly and outwardly by coming in contact with a church.  They only have such transformational experiences when coming in contact with Jesus.

    I mean, take a look at our Gospel lesson today from John.  It’s the story of how Jesus began assembling His group of disciples.  Jesus finds Philip and says, “Follow me.”  This is all we have regarding the encounter, but it must have had quite the effect on Philip.  Whatever transpired between Philip and Jesus, it was enough to cause Philip to rush to Nathanael and say, “We have found him about whom Moses in the law and also the prophets wrote, Jesus son of Joseph from Nazareth.”  Think about that.  From a simple encounter where Jesus says, “Follow me,” Philip rushes to Nathanael with words about Jesus being the Messiah!  Something deep happened to Philip.  Something very deep indeed.

    And what is Nathanael’s reaction to Philip?  How does Nathanael respond to this change in Philip?  Does he say, “Wow, Philip. I can see that your life has been transformed. I can see that God has done something to you, and my meeting with you has changed my life.  I want to follow Jesus so that I can have the same transformation as you.”?  Was this Nathanael’s reaction?  No.  Not in the least.  Natahanael is skeptical.  Nathanael doesn’t believe Philip.  “Can anything good come out of Nazareth?”

    Philip responds with the only thing he can, “Come and see.”  Come and see what though?  Well, the answer is obvious.  Come and see Jesus!  The invitation Philip ends up giving is not, “Come and see me.”  The invitation is to come and see Jesus!

    Ah, now, only now, can we see the potential for transformation.  Only now can Nathanael’s skepticism be met.  Nathanael actually does go.  He actually has an encounter with Jesus, and what happens?  What happens when Nathanael comes in contact with the Messiah?  Well, his life is changed.  He comes to believe.  He becomes a disciple.  Philip pointed the way, but Jesus brought about the transformation.  Jesus brought Nathanael to belief. 

    This is important to realize–very important because you and I will never transform anyone.  You and I will never be able to help anyone overcome their dissatisfaction.  You and I will never be able to solve the dilemma of being caught between the forces which tell us we are okay and we need to change.  It is only Jesus who can solve that problem. 

    And how does He do that?  How does He transform us and bring us to a place of satisfaction?  Here is how: by loving us while we are sinners.  By dying for us when we are broken. 

    You see, when we accept that we are sinful, that we are broken, then we know we need to change.  We know that we need to be transformed.  And hopefully, we discover that no amount of material possessions, money, sex, food, clothing, or activities can bring about that transformation.  Many of you know this.  Mark articulated this brilliantly in his poem.  These things will not bring about the deep change necessary.  There will always be that nagging piece deep within that says, “I’m not there yet.  These things haven’t really changed my character.  I am still deeply flawed.”

    But when you encounter Jesus with this frame of heart, something changes within you.  When you have an encounter with Jesus and He looks deep within your heart and He sees your flaws; He sees you as you are, and He still embraces you and loves you, you can’t help but marvel at His love and compassion.  You can’t help but be deeply affected because you know that He is the Messiah.  He is what we should be.  He is what we were made to be before our selfish nature took over.  And He was willing to offer himself in our place to die the death we deserved.  It’s like the child who was caught and knows he’s in trouble.  Who knows he’s done wrong.  Who knows he’s disappointed his parents to no end.  Whose shame is tangible and who expects to receive punishment but instead receives forgiveness along with the words, “You have done wrong, but we will love you because you are our child.”  At that moment, nothing else matters.  Nothing else will ever bring that kind of satisfaction.  You are loved in the midst of your brokenness, and you need nothing else.

    I remember vividly the Sunday before Mark suffered his stroke.  When I asked for prayer requests, he said, “That we may come to understand what you are preaching.”  I hope and pray that I am preaching Jesus.  For it is He who we must point to.  It is He whom we invite people to come and see.  It is He who transforms us and all those whom He comes to.  It is He who came for the sake of the world to bring us such satisfaction.

    For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son so that all those who believe in Him should not perish but have eternal life. For God sent the Son into the world not to condemn the world but so that the world may be saved through Him.  Amen.

Ah, to Have Seen...

    How do you know your family’s history?  I am not talking about your recent history–the history you have been a part of.  I am talking about the history which predates you.  I am talking about your great-grand parents; your great aunts and uncles; your ancestors who lived a hundred years or more ago.  How do you know what they did?  How do you know their stories?  How do you know their personalities and the things that were important to them?

    You were told.  Plain and simple, someone shared those stories with you at some point and time in your life.  This record was given to you either orally or in written form so that you now bear some of that history in the recesses of your mind, in your heart, or stored away on your bookshelf.  These witnesses have given you something very, very valuable.  But here is an interesting question for you to answer: could you prove the accuracy of the history that was given to you?  Could you, prove to a complete stranger that your great, great, great grandfather crossed the Atlantic Ocean as a stowaway to escape the Crimea War?  That he landed in Galveston and then migrated through Texas to settle near Seguin?  What evidence could you provide to prove this story to be true?  By the way, this is the story of one of my great, great, great grandfather’s.  I use it as an example because it would be difficult if not impossible to prove it–at least by rigorous, historical standards.

    In fact, much of what goes on in the world, we are unable to prove by rigorous historical standards.  Much of what goes on in the world is not covered by newspapers or historians or scholars.  Much of what goes on in the world escapes notice and is passed over in light of those events deemed much more important and newsworthy.  In light of this, we are forced to answer the question: why do we believe things that we are unable to see?  Why do we believe things happened even though we were not present for those things? 

    In a word: we trust those who shared those stories with us.  We trust our sources.  At some level, everyone must trust the truth of something that has not been seen: whether it is science, or history, or just chatting about the day with one’s spouse or significant other.  We trust, dare I say, we have faith in the one who tells us of such events.

    Such trust is an important topic for Christians to address, for we often get accused of believing without seeing.  We often get accused of having blind faith–a dogged belief that has absolutely no evidence to back it up.  I could not disagree more.  Our faith indeed has a foundation–just like Simeon’s faith had a foundation.

    Our Gospel lesson this morning has several different foci.  We could focus our attention on Mary and Joseph’s intention to follow God’s laws and commands.  We could focus our attention on Anna the prophetess and her faithfulness, and we could focus on Simeon and his faithful witness.  This would be too long of a sermon, however, so I will focus on one of these things: Simeon. 

    We only know a little bit about Simeon.  Some assume that he is an old man, but we don’t get that from the biblical record.  We don’t know if he is a priest, a peasant, a craftsman, a farmer, a merchant, or any other occupation.  We don’t know what social circles he mingles in or whether or not he has any status at all.  All we know is that he is righteous and devout; he is seeking the consolation of Israel; and the Holy Spirit has told him he would see the Messiah.  This is all the text reveals to us.  It’s not much, but it is important.

    For Simeon is righteous and devout.  This means he works diligently to be in right relationships with others and with God.  Righteousness in the Greek can also be translated as justice which suggests he seeks to follow the command of loving one’s neighbor as one’s self.  Devout means he seeks to maintain his relationship with God and follow God’s commands of worship and sacrifice and holiness.  While maintaining these important things, Simeon also seeks the consolation of Israel–this means he is holding out hope for God’s promised restoration of the Kingdom.  Simeon trusts, believes, has faith in the witness of the prophets who spoke long, long ago.  Simeon does these things not because he has a blind faith.  He is not doing all of these things because he is just being obedient expecting a reward at the end of all things.  He is not a dog sitting up to get a treat for doing what was expected.  No.  There is no hint of reward–instead, there is hint that this is simply who Simeon is as a person.  He trusts the witness of the prophets.  He trusts the Torah which points to the things God intends.  He believes these things are true and just.  Therefore, he puts them into practice.  And somewhere along the line–in his devotion, the Spirit spoke to him giving him a word of promise, “You will see the Messiah before you die.”  Simeon knew the Spirit had spoken through the prophets of old.  Would this promise come true?  Would it be for him as it had been for the prophets? 

    On this particular day, the Spirit spoke to Simeon once again.  Heeding it’s call, Simeon headed to the Temple.  Was the journey blindly taken?  I doubt it.  He knew the promises included in the Law in the Prophets.  He knew the Spirit had spoken before.  He had a history.  He had evidence.  He had witnesses who had gone before, and all of them lined up.  All of them pointed in this direction.  He went to the temple and beheld Mary, Joseph, and their child Jesus.  “This is the one!” Simeon must have said to himself.  “Master, now you are dismissing your servant in peace,   according to your word; 30 for my eyes have seen your salvation, 31 which you have prepared in the presence of all peoples, 32 a light for revelation to the Gentiles  and for glory to your people Israel.”

    Ah, what it would have been like to see such a thing.  Wouldn’t it have been great to hold Jesus in our hands and look upon His face?  Wouldn’t it have been great to be there to hear Him preach and teach?  Wouldn’t it have been great to have had Him appear to us after His death and resurrection and tell us “Now, go and make disciples of all nations.”?  Of course it would have.  It would have been great to see such a thing.  It would also be great if Jesus could do such a thing now.  It would be great if He could come stand among us this morning and offer a word to each of us.  It would be great for Him to suddenly appear and remind us why we worship; why we celebrate Christmas; why we seek to love our neighbor as we love ourselves. 

    Seeing would be believing, wouldn’t it?  Seeing would convince your heart and your mind?  Ah, but here is the crux of the issue: if Jesus did such a thing, and you went to tell others, would they believe you?  Would they trust you?  Would you be credible?  And how would you react if people did not believe you when you told them what you had seen?  Would their reaction cause doubts to arise within you, or would you proclaim all the more?

    The earliest witnesses to Jesus’ life, death and resurrection faced tons of opposition.  They faced tons of rejection.  They had more than a few people scoff at their witness, but they didn’t stop.  They didn’t quiet down.  Something radical had happened in their lives.  Something had changed them to their very core.  They had encountered the risen Jesus, and their hearts and minds were at peace.  They knew what God had done through Jesus, and they trusted in Jesus’ promise with their whole being.  They had faith in Him, and so despite the opposition; despite what others did to them, they kept telling about what God had done.  They persevered in living out this new faith.  They worked to be trustworthy and honest and upright.  They made no bones about their shortcomings and their brokenness.  They were not afraid to share their frailties and failings.  For Jesus did not accept them and love them because they were perfect.  Jesus did not die for them because they were holy or just or righteous.  Jesus did not call them because they were the religious elite; the smartest intellectuals; or the highest on the social totem pole.  No.  It was exactly the opposite.  It was a radical departure from everything the world had taught and has taught since then.  The first apostles knew the good news.

    For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son so that all those who believe in Him should not perish but have eternal life.  For God sent the Son into the world not to condemn the world but so that the world may be saved through Him.

    And Jesus accomplished this by dying when we were unlovable and then rising to new life to show us that our unlovable nature will be transformed.  The disciples saw it.  And they passed it on.  To you and to me.  They passed this history to us and have asked us to trust their witness.  They want us to trust in Jesus like they trusted in Jesus so that our lives may be transformed.

    I stand before you today as one whose life has been transformed by faith in Jesus.  I stand before you today as one who has had his life turned upside down in a very good way because of understanding just what it means to have God enter into our world and die for us when we were unlovable.  I stand before you today as one who still is not perfect; who has failed to be a perfect example of morality and justice; who still says the wrong things and does the wrong things; who has upset people even when I did not intend to; who at times is overcome with self-interest and selfish desire; and yet, despite all of this know that God is working in my life to transform me–to transform the way I view the world; to transform the way I love you and others.  As the great hymn writer John Newton–who wrote Amazing Grace-- once said, “I am not what I ought to be, I am not what I want to be, I am not what I hope to be in another world; but still I am not what I once used to be, and by the grace of God I am what I am.” 

    And I am what I am because God so loved the world that Jesus died for me while I was broken and there were those who were willing to pass this history down.  There were those who trusted this promise who helped me trust this promise, and now I invite you to trust it as well.  It will have the same effect on you.  Amen.

Be a Witness

    Long ago, when I was in high school, I actually had the privilege of having my dad teach me Algebra, Physics, Chemistry, and Pre-Calculus.  I know I am biased, but my dad was a very good teacher.  I learned a lot from him.  But there was one thing which rather upset me at the time.  Dad wouldn’t help me with my homework at home.  If I had a question about anything, I was required to go to his class during study hall.  He just wouldn’t help me at home.  It was rather frustrating!  Why would my dad do this to me?  Why would he make me go to study hall to get help?  He was right there!  It didn’t seem fair. 

    But, let’s think about this for just a moment.  Let’s think about why my dad did what he did.  Let’s think about what is and isn’t fair.  And let’s think about it by asking this question: Did Jesus need to be baptized?  Ponder that for just a moment.  Did Jesus need to be baptized?
    The obvious answer is “No.”  I mean John the Baptist is blunt when Jesus shows up to be baptized.  John looks Jesus straight in the eye and says, ““I need to be baptized by you, and do you come to me?” 

    Jesus is God incarnate–the fully human, fully divine Son of God.  God doesn’t need to be baptized–at all.  God doesn’t need repentance or the forgiveness of sins.  Jesus is blameless before God and before humanity.  There is no need for him to go through this process.  At all.  Yet, Jesus shows up to be baptized by John, and Jesus makes John go through with it.  “Let it be so now; for it is proper for us in this way to fulfill all righteousness.”   Why does Jesus demand to be baptized? 

    Let’s turn to the opening statement of our second lesson from the book of Acts.  Peter is addressing the household of Cornelius–a Gentile.  Please remember in the context of this time, Jews and Gentiles did not mix.  They were like oil and water.  Jews considered Gentiles unclean.  Peter had just had a vision in which a sheet was lowered out of heaven with all sorts of unclean animals on it.  God commanded Peter, “Get up. Kill and eat.”  Peter replied, “Nothing unclean has ever touched my lips.”  God said, “What I have called clean, do not call unclean.”Immediately after this vision, messengers from Cornelius arrived at Peter’s door.  They said Cornelius had received a command to contact Peter while praying.  Peter went to the household.  When he arrived, he found a group of God-fearing Gentiles who were receptive to the message of Jesus Christ.  The Holy Spirit brought them to faith.

    Upon seeing this, St. Peter addresses the people who had gathered in the house, “I truly understand that God shows no partiality, but in every nation anyone who fears him and does what is right is acceptable to him.”  Now, we usually take this text and run with it and talk about how God doesn’t show any sort of favoritism based upon one’s cultural context, one’s gender, one’s sexuality, one’s skin color, or what have you.  There is nothing wrong with doing such a thing, but I think we need to push it farther.  We need to push God’s impartiality all the way through.  Even to His own Son who came to live among us.

            Why was Jesus baptized?  God shows no partiality.

    Why did my dad refuse to help me at home?  Dad shows no partiality.  Not all the students could access my dad as easy as I could.  It wasn’t fair to them if he helped me at home.  Dad wasn’t going to show favoritism.

    God wasn’t going to either, and this has some very important implications–some very important implications.  How so?

    Well, let’s think just a moment about what things might have looked like if God showed partiality.  Let’s think just a moment about what Jesus’ life might have looked like if God showered Him with favoritism as the Word became flesh and dwelled among us.

    Do you think Jesus would have been born in a stable?  Not hardly.

    Do you think Jesus would have been raised in a rather poor family and been taught the trade of carpentry–a trade considered very, very low on the social totem pole?  Probably not.

    Do you think Jesus would have lived for 30 years in relative obscurity with no one knowing much about Him?  Again, no.

    If God showed any sort of partiality, Jesus probably would have been born in a palace.  He would have had the best of wealth and privilege.  He would have eaten the finest foods, enjoyed the finest drink, gone to the finest schools and had the finest clothes.  He would have enjoyed all the best things the world had to offer and never had to deal with social outcasts and misfits.  Life would have always been grand and marvelous IF, IF God showed partiality to His Son.

    But God shows no partiality.  God shows no favoritism.  Even to His Son.

    And so Jesus was poor, like the vast majority of the world’s population.

    Jesus had to work, and His hands were calloused from the labor of carpentry–just like most people in the world have to work.

    Jesus was surrounded by ordinary people who did ordinary things and who eked out their living.  Jesus never had a place of wealth and privilege.  He was just like the vast majority of people who lived.

    And Jesus was not immune to suffering.  “God shows no partiality.”  If God showed favoritism, there wouldn’t have been a cross.  But there was.  There was a cross.  A horrible, bloody cross that Jesus hung upon.  Just as we suffer, Jesus suffered. 

    But there was more to Jesus’ suffering because He did not carry simply His own suffering.  It wasn’t just His pain He bore on the cross.  No.  “This is my Son,” God said at Jesus’ baptism, “with Him I am well pleased.”

    God’s Son sent to reconcile the world to God.  Jesus didn’t just hang on the cross experiencing His own suffering because He took upon Himself our suffering.  He took upon Himself our shame.  He took upon Himself our guilt.  He took upon Himself our sin.  He took upon Himself our pain. 

    For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son so that all those who believe in Him should not perish but have eternal life.  For God sent the Son into the world not to condemn the world but so that the world might be saved through Him.

    Just as God showed no partiality in how Jesus lived, suffered, and died, so God will show no partiality in salvation.  “Because He lives, we shall live also” and “neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor rulers, nor things present, nor things to come, nor powers, nor height, nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.”

    This is grace without partiality.  For you and for me and for all who call upon the name of Jesus.  And we are witnesses to this Grace.  We are witnesses to what God has done through Jesus Christ.  We are witnesses of how God did not even show favoritism to His own Son.  We are witnesses to the God who is not above suffering, but who suffered like us and who showed us what the final word will be.

    Is this news worth telling?  Is this grace worth sharing?  Do others need to hear about the God who suffers with them and promises them hope?  Is there any doubt about what we are called to do?  Live God’s Word Daily.  Be a witness.  Amen.