Old Mystic, February 8, 2009
Mark 1:29-39
Summary
The message of the gospel preached by Jesus implicitly contains a promise of healing. He announced the good news of a better future of peace and justice where we will be whole. At the present time we are in the process of being healed and we are called to participate in and contribute to the building of God’s Kingdom.
Sermon
The disciples must have been impressed when they walked out of the synagogue in Capernaum. Their new teacher, Jesus of Nazareth, was very special. The people of the town of Capernaum had expressed their surprise boldly: Jesus had authority. He had authority to teach and even to cast out demons! There was something captivating about him; something that made him different, special. It comes as no surprise that people began to follow him.
But his disciples had the upper hand; they were his followers and therefore had the privilege of bringing him into their home. They had not been with Jesus for a long time yet they had already had a taste of his power and authority and now he was there, in their home. This image has always had a powerful attraction: the meaning of Christ coming into our home; into our lives with his teaching, his authority, his power, and his presence.
And his coming into the house of Peter and Andrew did not go unnoticed; it was not just an uneventful occurrence. After all by bringing Jesus into the house—or perhaps Jesus had invited himself, they had just invited the very presence of God into their midst. How aware Peter, Andrew, James, and John were of this presence we don’t know. Yet, they brought to Jesus’ attention the fact that Peter’s mother in law was in bed with fever. And the Scripture tells us that He came and took her by the hand and lifted her up. Then the fever left her, and she began to serve them.
I find such a powerful symbolism in Jesus coming into the home of his followers, in his lifting up of a person who is sick, and performing a miracle of healing. And as a preacher I am tempted to proclaim that by opening our homes, our lives and families; that surrendering our hearts and souls to the presence of God through Jesus Christ, we will experience healing. I would not perhaps stress so much the miracle itself but point to the fact that by faith healing takes place; healing is possible.
Our passage read today tells us that Jesus brought healing to many more that were brought to him at sundown and concludes by saying that Jesus had the urgency—and that also involved his disciples—of going to the neighboring towns and do what he had come to do: to proclaim the good news; the message of salvation, reconciliation, and transformation of the human heart. I have no doubt that in the proclamation of good news healing is involved: Relational, emotional, social, and physical healing. The gospel is both a reality and a promise. It is a reality because even when we are still waiting for God’s Kingdom to fully come, we are already seeing signs of that kingdom among us. We live “in between the times,” as Theologian Rene Padilla once said.
Living in that tension, we are experiencing signs of healing but at the same time we continue to suffer, we see others suffer, and we are still immersed in a world with an incredible long list of diseases. Have you kept count of how many friends and family members have you lost to the horror of cancer? Is the number of people diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease increasing or is it just that we are growing in awareness of its consuming, unstoppable power of destruction? As we look into these human maladies, it is so difficult to hang on to a promise of healing.
But let us hang on to the promise! I can testify to healing. Ministering to many different kinds of people for almost 25 years I have seen miraculous healings, but also healings that many would attribute to science or the advancement of technology. Yet, who has endowed human beings with the power to seek, research, discover, and create ways to cure? Either medical or divine, I have seen my share of healings. At the same time I can witness to the pain of many who their sufferings ended the moment God called them home. Again, we live in the tension between what is already here, God’s grace, God’s love, and God’s healing in Jesus Christ, and the hope of what it is yet to come.
Let’s us hang on to the promise and let us bring Jesus the Christ into our homes, into our lives, into our circumstances. It is not surprising that in most of the Biblical examples those who were healed were people in the fringes of society. The poor, the humble, and the oppressed; those who were brought by somebody else; people who did not have the strength to come by themselves but who in their humbleness understood what it meant to come into the healing hands of the living Christ. It is not surprising that those at the margin, in the obscure and good-for-nothing province of Galilee received more healing than the well-to-do, educated, and perhaps more sophisticated folks of Jerusalem, the center of Jewish life.
Many of us may feel that in terms of healing and health we are still empty handed. We have a promise; that is what the gospel is all about. But at the same time we may be expecting some kind of healing that is taking forever to happen or it may not happen at all for us in this life. But, what can I say? Let us hang on to the promise of healing!
Our Bible story should not be understood as a promise of instant, miraculous healing for everyone as it may be portrayed by many enthusiasts. Neither should it be seen as some mythological story that never took place. I believe that we should consider the words of James, the Apostle, when he writes, Are any among you suffering? They should pray… Are any among you sick? They should call for the elders of the church and have them pray over them, anointing them with oil in the name of the Lord. The prayer of faith will save the sick, and the Lord will raise them up… The prayer of the righteous is powerful and effective. Why not anoint and pray for the sick? It is a good response to the promise of healing contained in the gospel that is revealed to us in the passage.
It is a very simple revelation: one day, some time, in this life or in our life to come, healing will happen. It is a promise; the eternal shalom for the children of God is a promised state of wholeness in God’s presence. For that reason, when we think of this wonderful promise of healing, we can say that healing is a process and healing is never complete.
1. HEALING IS A PROCESS
We are in the process of being saved; in the process of being reconciled; in the process of being transformed. We are not a finished product. In fact, what we see of ourselves in this life is only a distorted image of what God intended us to be. Paul said, “For now we see in a mirror, dimly, but then we will see face to face. Now I know only in part; then I will know fully.” We have only signs of the glorious days ahead of us.
Yet, we can count on the promise of healing because, when we hold on to our faith in the Living God and in his son Jesus Christ, we are already beginning to have a taste of that healing if not a substantial transformation of our spirits, our bodies, our relationships, and our circumstances.
2. HEALING IS NEVER COMPLETE
Should healing be ever complete, then we would be whole. But wholeness is still a promise. We can be healed in many ways, after all health is a holistic concept that involves our whole being and in some way perhaps we may experience some kind of healing. Yet, is there any Christian in this world who is completely healthy, in the fullest sense of wholeness? Some would like to believe so and even boast about it. Those who are realistic, however, believe in the promise but know that for the time being they have just to hang on… to that promise.
Healing is perhaps never complete when we think of the manifold dimensions of human wholeness. One day we have a physical ailment, yet we are in good spirits. Another day we enjoy a more or less healthy body but our relationships are strained. Some other time we are physically healthy and we are getting along perfectly well with the rest of the world yet we find ourselves emotionally down. There won’t be a perfect day in this life. Only signs of healing, but signs that must be present somehow in our lives; signs of hope.
Healing took place when the sick came to Jesus. I’m also inclined to believe that not all who came were healed. But the signs were clear; God’s revelation through this passage affirms the nature of our hope: a hope of life, abundant, and everlasting. And God’s way for Christianity is through Jesus Christ. It was Jesus himself who said: “Come to me, all you that are weary and are carrying heavy burdens, and I will give you rest.” The promise stands: we will all be healed sooner or later.
Submission to Freedom
Old Mystic, February 1, 2009
Mark 1:21-28
Summary
The event in the synagogue in Capernaum, that according to Mark initiates Jesus’ public ministry, is a statement and revelation of the authority and liberating power of Christ. The casting of the evil spirit illustrates God’s saving work; and by our experience of submission to Jesus, we enter into a life of true freedom which though still unfinished it will one day be perfected.
Sermon
This is a story that takes place in a synagogue, the ancient predecessor of what we know as the church. In our days, perhaps, we have institutionalized the church too much to the point of seeing it as a structure, as a place, or an organization; may be a corporation. Yet the church has always being the ekklesia, the assembly of God’s people. The church is not the structure, or the building; the church is the people! And so was the synagogue in the days when Jesus began his public ministry. An assembly of people, a rather small gathering, but with a distinct order of service, a consciousness of what it meant to be God’s people, and a deep sense of the sacredness of the Torah which was read and taught consistently--what we would call today “worship.”
As when we come to church—hopefully with the expectation of experiencing God, and with some degree of excitement—we can assume that the folks gathered at the synagogue in Capernaum were excited. And that was a different day. A new teacher was at the lectern and there was something special about him. And the reaction of the crowd—whether, verbally at that point we don’t know—came out immediately: “They were astounded at his teaching, for he taught them as one having authority, and not as the scribes.” It seems evident to me that some of them were a little tired of their own tradition; those who saw it as a forceful, crystallized, and dogmatic attachment to the law. And there came Jesus. A different voice; an astounding teaching; a new experience. A new sense of awe was in the air.
Did they understand the significance of the moment? Did they realize that they were in the very presence of the incarnate God to whom they could only relate by recitations of the Torah or prescribed prayers? If they didn’t, who can blame them? Does anyone understand the significance of coming into the “House of the Lord,” not because it is a custom, or because of the quality of the programs, or because it is a good place to socialize, but simply because God’s promise that God is in the midst of two or three that are gathered in his name? I pray that the sense of awe of God’s presence invades the atmosphere of this building and comes upon this gathered community.
It was a perfect gathering—the one at the synagogue in Capernaum. That teacher, Jesus of Nazareth, the son of a carpenter—not the typical teacher, was something special that deserved to be heard. Everybody was expectant, everybody was all ears and then the cry: “What have you to do with us, Jesus of Nazareth?” A man with an “evil spirit” interrupted the flow of the fascinating teaching of the carpenter. It was disturbing for the witnesses at the synagogue, but perhaps for different reasons than it would be for us—21st Century onlookers.
a. They believed in demons; they were a fact of life. They believed in a constant battle between good and evil; and evil was personified in spirits who would possess, control, and oppress human beings and the manifestation of these demons were sometimes simply horrendous. Shouting, shaking, falling down and loosing completely the control of their bodies, and changing dramatically the tone of their voices were some of the characteristic effects that came along with the presence of evil spirits. Most of the time in the days of Jesus, evil spirits were believed to be the cause of the many diseases people suffered. And, unfortunately, they were also the basis for social sanction. Something was wrong with the person who suffered the oppression of illness; it was a “punishment from God.”
b. We, the people of the 21st century, having undergone the age of reason, we who pretend to have the answers or are diligently seeking a rational, scientific explanation for everything, we the moderns, are no less disturbed than our first century counterparts. We would perhaps say that the man was simply an epileptic (poor thing!); or may be a drunkard, or a mentally challenged individual. Perhaps many would feel pity for the poor man and, even when we might pretend to have a logical explanation, we would be equally disturbed. We don’t believe in demons! That is part of a magical sense of religion that was left in the past long time ago. We now deal with computer viruses, the pest of our technological age. How deep we have been caught in the trap of what French sociologist Jacques Ellul called the “technological bluff!” We are scientific, rationalistic, and technological, how can we believe in a spiritual world or underworld?
If someone started talking while the pastor is preaching any given Sunday, at any given mildly civilized congregation, even among those who are “more spiritual,” we would find a way of quieting that person down. A couple of strong guys might do it. If the drunkard, or the mentally ill, or the “possessed” offered resistance, or some kicking and cursing, it might take four or more to subdue that person. But the key question this morning for both the first century and 21st century church goers is: do we understand what it means to be oppressed? Don’t we realize that we are seeing someone who is suffering, whether a mental illness, or overcome by evil, yet suffering?
I believe in such a thing as spiritual oppression. In fact, I have seen it with my own eyes, heard it with my own ears, and anointed with oil some of these “cursed” people using my own hands. Were they demon possessed? Let everyone choose what they want to believe. But the fact remains that many, even among ourselves, are in need of the healing, powerful, liberating, and transforming work of Jesus Christ. This message is not about demonology! Let the focus be on the Teacher, the one who shocked the synagogue in Capernaum. Jesus, the Christ; the incarnate son of God; our savior and the Lamb of God that takes away the sin of the world. Jesus the liberator!
We are all oppressed in some way. We are perhaps in the process of being liberated from illnesses, weaknesses, failures, and shortcomings—and sin, which is the ultimate “work of the devil” to enslave us. But if our eyes are turned upon the one standing at the lectern in the synagogue in Capernaum, if we experience an encounter with the Living Christ, than human being Jesus, we have the promise of freedom.
But freedom doesn’t come by easily. Contrary to our perception of what freedom is—the possibility to do as we please as individuals, we are only free when all are free; when we discover the true significance of what it means to be human in the likeness of Jesus and our freedom then translates into making peace, loving, and the joy of service. When Jesus said: “Be silent, and come out of him!" he began the process of liberation of a man who was oppressed, who could not in any way experience freedom. Jesus is the one who sets us free.
I. JESUS SETS US FREE BECAUSE HE HAS AUTHORITY
Did you realize that in spite of the sense of astonishment that the teachings of Jesus brought upon that congregation that the only one, who could clearly recognize who Jesus was, was the man with the evil spirit? Neither the ruler of the synagogue, nor the elders, nor the attendant, nor the scribes. Only the poor oppressed individual. Who are the blind of our age? What keeps humanity unaware? Haven’t we been proclaiming this truth for ages?
Jesus can bring us into the “freedom of the children of God.” The man with the evil spirit recognized Jesus. He said when he saw him: “I know who you are, the Holy One of God." He knew he could not resist the attraction of the amazing presence of the Christ; he knew he had to surrender to the authority of the Teacher. The text does not explicitly tell us much about an act of submission. Yet, he indeed submitted himself to the experience of entering into the promise of freedom. Because of his authority, Jesus forgives us and sets us free. For that reason John says: “If we confess our sins, he who is faithful and just will forgive us our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness.”
Jesus’ authority has been challenged by many. As Christians we have to endure our own doubts and the challenges that come out of our own ranks. Questions are raised regarding the historicity of Jesus Christ; many of the great sayings of Jesus are now being challenged as being part of the lore of his time and perhaps used by sages in those days. Even the historicity of this passage can be questioned if we submit ourselves to the rules of scientific, historical inquiry. Have we lost that sense of awe, the same that invaded the room at the synagogue in Capernaum? Even the doubters of that day were perplexed with Jesus’ teaching and called it “a new teaching—with authority.” They might have not surrendered to the liberating work of Jesus, yet they recognized his authority; way above the leaders of his time. Jesus is the liberator of humankind and he sets us free because of his authority.
II. JESUS SETS US FREE BECAUSE HE HAS POWER
The text says that “the unclean spirit, convulsing him and crying with a loud voice, came out of him.” And the man was set free. What a demonstration of power among people who believed that the forces of evil could penetrate the lives of individuals and control them! Mark is trying to make a point very clear through this story and in fact throughout his entire gospel—Jesus has the power to bind the strong man, the supreme power of evil. It is the power to set us all free.
Whether demonic or human, we are dealing in this age—like in all other ages—with the reality of powers and principalities that shape us, control us, and oppress us. At a global level, it becomes so visible when we watch civilians bombarded and killed; when we learn that almost half of the population of the world lives with less than $2 a day; when only 10% of the stockholders in America own 90% of the assets, and all of this, in a failing economy where many more these days are jobless, scrambling to make the ends meet. A simple look at these facts makes us feel doubtful about the liberating power of Jesus. Someone may even suggest that this saving power is only spiritual, just for the life beyond this life. I believe that the promises of God for humankind are a historical project. For the time being we are barely seeing signs of the kingdom to come. But the power, the liberating power of Jesus has made us free already by virtue of our faith.
But there is another level of human experience—the personal, the existential—where individuals encounter the experiences of every day life and battle to make the most out of their living. And as individuals we encounter obstacles, we are engaged in struggles, we suffer illnesses, depression, PTSD, isolation, alienation, pain, sorrow, and loneliness. How much we need to surrender to the liberating Jesus! By experience we know that we will not be free overnight. But the promise stands. We will know the truth and the truth shall set us free. For the time being, we only have glimpses.
I want to conclude by saying that we need to recover the amazement that engulfed the folks at the synagogue in Capernaum. We need to grow in the recognition of God’s saving and liberating grace in Jesus Christ. We want to delight ourselves in the beauty of a peaceful freedom, in a kind of a state of bliss; in the hope a glorious future. But this freedom is not just something we are “naturally endowed with;” or a human right, or a civil right. It is indeed all of that. Yet, it is much more. It is the discovery of true life and of real meaning. It is freedom to love, freedom to make peace, and freedom to serve beyond the limitations of our human condition. This is not a freedom that can be conquered; it is a freedom that comes out of submission. And it is possible for anyone who can say differently than the man with the evil spirit in the synagogue, “I understand who you are, Jesus of Nazareth. You are the Holy One from God. I know what you have to do with me and I wish to submit to your freedom.”
Old Mystic, February 1, 2009
Mark 1:21-28
Summary
The event in the synagogue in Capernaum, that according to Mark initiates Jesus’ public ministry, is a statement and revelation of the authority and liberating power of Christ. The casting of the evil spirit illustrates God’s saving work; and by our experience of submission to Jesus, we enter into a life of true freedom which though still unfinished it will one day be perfected.
Sermon
This is a story that takes place in a synagogue, the ancient predecessor of what we know as the church. In our days, perhaps, we have institutionalized the church too much to the point of seeing it as a structure, as a place, or an organization; may be a corporation. Yet the church has always being the ekklesia, the assembly of God’s people. The church is not the structure, or the building; the church is the people! And so was the synagogue in the days when Jesus began his public ministry. An assembly of people, a rather small gathering, but with a distinct order of service, a consciousness of what it meant to be God’s people, and a deep sense of the sacredness of the Torah which was read and taught consistently--what we would call today “worship.”
As when we come to church—hopefully with the expectation of experiencing God, and with some degree of excitement—we can assume that the folks gathered at the synagogue in Capernaum were excited. And that was a different day. A new teacher was at the lectern and there was something special about him. And the reaction of the crowd—whether, verbally at that point we don’t know—came out immediately: “They were astounded at his teaching, for he taught them as one having authority, and not as the scribes.” It seems evident to me that some of them were a little tired of their own tradition; those who saw it as a forceful, crystallized, and dogmatic attachment to the law. And there came Jesus. A different voice; an astounding teaching; a new experience. A new sense of awe was in the air.
Did they understand the significance of the moment? Did they realize that they were in the very presence of the incarnate God to whom they could only relate by recitations of the Torah or prescribed prayers? If they didn’t, who can blame them? Does anyone understand the significance of coming into the “House of the Lord,” not because it is a custom, or because of the quality of the programs, or because it is a good place to socialize, but simply because God’s promise that God is in the midst of two or three that are gathered in his name? I pray that the sense of awe of God’s presence invades the atmosphere of this building and comes upon this gathered community.
It was a perfect gathering—the one at the synagogue in Capernaum. That teacher, Jesus of Nazareth, the son of a carpenter—not the typical teacher, was something special that deserved to be heard. Everybody was expectant, everybody was all ears and then the cry: “What have you to do with us, Jesus of Nazareth?” A man with an “evil spirit” interrupted the flow of the fascinating teaching of the carpenter. It was disturbing for the witnesses at the synagogue, but perhaps for different reasons than it would be for us—21st Century onlookers.
a. They believed in demons; they were a fact of life. They believed in a constant battle between good and evil; and evil was personified in spirits who would possess, control, and oppress human beings and the manifestation of these demons were sometimes simply horrendous. Shouting, shaking, falling down and loosing completely the control of their bodies, and changing dramatically the tone of their voices were some of the characteristic effects that came along with the presence of evil spirits. Most of the time in the days of Jesus, evil spirits were believed to be the cause of the many diseases people suffered. And, unfortunately, they were also the basis for social sanction. Something was wrong with the person who suffered the oppression of illness; it was a “punishment from God.”
b. We, the people of the 21st century, having undergone the age of reason, we who pretend to have the answers or are diligently seeking a rational, scientific explanation for everything, we the moderns, are no less disturbed than our first century counterparts. We would perhaps say that the man was simply an epileptic (poor thing!); or may be a drunkard, or a mentally challenged individual. Perhaps many would feel pity for the poor man and, even when we might pretend to have a logical explanation, we would be equally disturbed. We don’t believe in demons! That is part of a magical sense of religion that was left in the past long time ago. We now deal with computer viruses, the pest of our technological age. How deep we have been caught in the trap of what French sociologist Jacques Ellul called the “technological bluff!” We are scientific, rationalistic, and technological, how can we believe in a spiritual world or underworld?
If someone started talking while the pastor is preaching any given Sunday, at any given mildly civilized congregation, even among those who are “more spiritual,” we would find a way of quieting that person down. A couple of strong guys might do it. If the drunkard, or the mentally ill, or the “possessed” offered resistance, or some kicking and cursing, it might take four or more to subdue that person. But the key question this morning for both the first century and 21st century church goers is: do we understand what it means to be oppressed? Don’t we realize that we are seeing someone who is suffering, whether a mental illness, or overcome by evil, yet suffering?
I believe in such a thing as spiritual oppression. In fact, I have seen it with my own eyes, heard it with my own ears, and anointed with oil some of these “cursed” people using my own hands. Were they demon possessed? Let everyone choose what they want to believe. But the fact remains that many, even among ourselves, are in need of the healing, powerful, liberating, and transforming work of Jesus Christ. This message is not about demonology! Let the focus be on the Teacher, the one who shocked the synagogue in Capernaum. Jesus, the Christ; the incarnate son of God; our savior and the Lamb of God that takes away the sin of the world. Jesus the liberator!
We are all oppressed in some way. We are perhaps in the process of being liberated from illnesses, weaknesses, failures, and shortcomings—and sin, which is the ultimate “work of the devil” to enslave us. But if our eyes are turned upon the one standing at the lectern in the synagogue in Capernaum, if we experience an encounter with the Living Christ, than human being Jesus, we have the promise of freedom.
But freedom doesn’t come by easily. Contrary to our perception of what freedom is—the possibility to do as we please as individuals, we are only free when all are free; when we discover the true significance of what it means to be human in the likeness of Jesus and our freedom then translates into making peace, loving, and the joy of service. When Jesus said: “Be silent, and come out of him!" he began the process of liberation of a man who was oppressed, who could not in any way experience freedom. Jesus is the one who sets us free.
I. JESUS SETS US FREE BECAUSE HE HAS AUTHORITY
Did you realize that in spite of the sense of astonishment that the teachings of Jesus brought upon that congregation that the only one, who could clearly recognize who Jesus was, was the man with the evil spirit? Neither the ruler of the synagogue, nor the elders, nor the attendant, nor the scribes. Only the poor oppressed individual. Who are the blind of our age? What keeps humanity unaware? Haven’t we been proclaiming this truth for ages?
Jesus can bring us into the “freedom of the children of God.” The man with the evil spirit recognized Jesus. He said when he saw him: “I know who you are, the Holy One of God." He knew he could not resist the attraction of the amazing presence of the Christ; he knew he had to surrender to the authority of the Teacher. The text does not explicitly tell us much about an act of submission. Yet, he indeed submitted himself to the experience of entering into the promise of freedom. Because of his authority, Jesus forgives us and sets us free. For that reason John says: “If we confess our sins, he who is faithful and just will forgive us our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness.”
Jesus’ authority has been challenged by many. As Christians we have to endure our own doubts and the challenges that come out of our own ranks. Questions are raised regarding the historicity of Jesus Christ; many of the great sayings of Jesus are now being challenged as being part of the lore of his time and perhaps used by sages in those days. Even the historicity of this passage can be questioned if we submit ourselves to the rules of scientific, historical inquiry. Have we lost that sense of awe, the same that invaded the room at the synagogue in Capernaum? Even the doubters of that day were perplexed with Jesus’ teaching and called it “a new teaching—with authority.” They might have not surrendered to the liberating work of Jesus, yet they recognized his authority; way above the leaders of his time. Jesus is the liberator of humankind and he sets us free because of his authority.
II. JESUS SETS US FREE BECAUSE HE HAS POWER
The text says that “the unclean spirit, convulsing him and crying with a loud voice, came out of him.” And the man was set free. What a demonstration of power among people who believed that the forces of evil could penetrate the lives of individuals and control them! Mark is trying to make a point very clear through this story and in fact throughout his entire gospel—Jesus has the power to bind the strong man, the supreme power of evil. It is the power to set us all free.
Whether demonic or human, we are dealing in this age—like in all other ages—with the reality of powers and principalities that shape us, control us, and oppress us. At a global level, it becomes so visible when we watch civilians bombarded and killed; when we learn that almost half of the population of the world lives with less than $2 a day; when only 10% of the stockholders in America own 90% of the assets, and all of this, in a failing economy where many more these days are jobless, scrambling to make the ends meet. A simple look at these facts makes us feel doubtful about the liberating power of Jesus. Someone may even suggest that this saving power is only spiritual, just for the life beyond this life. I believe that the promises of God for humankind are a historical project. For the time being we are barely seeing signs of the kingdom to come. But the power, the liberating power of Jesus has made us free already by virtue of our faith.
But there is another level of human experience—the personal, the existential—where individuals encounter the experiences of every day life and battle to make the most out of their living. And as individuals we encounter obstacles, we are engaged in struggles, we suffer illnesses, depression, PTSD, isolation, alienation, pain, sorrow, and loneliness. How much we need to surrender to the liberating Jesus! By experience we know that we will not be free overnight. But the promise stands. We will know the truth and the truth shall set us free. For the time being, we only have glimpses.
I want to conclude by saying that we need to recover the amazement that engulfed the folks at the synagogue in Capernaum. We need to grow in the recognition of God’s saving and liberating grace in Jesus Christ. We want to delight ourselves in the beauty of a peaceful freedom, in a kind of a state of bliss; in the hope a glorious future. But this freedom is not just something we are “naturally endowed with;” or a human right, or a civil right. It is indeed all of that. Yet, it is much more. It is the discovery of true life and of real meaning. It is freedom to love, freedom to make peace, and freedom to serve beyond the limitations of our human condition. This is not a freedom that can be conquered; it is a freedom that comes out of submission. And it is possible for anyone who can say differently than the man with the evil spirit in the synagogue, “I understand who you are, Jesus of Nazareth. You are the Holy One from God. I know what you have to do with me and I wish to submit to your freedom.”
The Stranger has Come Home
The Stranger Has Come Home
Old Mystic, CT
January 25, 2009
Ephesians 2:11-20
Jesus Christ is the cornerstone, the foundation of our lives, our peace, and the architect of a new humanity. In his death he has reconciled us with God and with our fellow human beings, broken the walls of differences and separation, and he made peace as he brought us all together into his household so there are no more strangers.
What an extraordinary combination of events and celebrations took place this past week! Our nation, in a unique historic moment, a moment so much awaited by many, a moment that perhaps even the most optimistic onlookers had doubts it would ever happen, witnessed the inauguration of the first African American president in history. It was not by chance, I believe, that this singular event coincided with the observance of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Day and the beginning of the week of prayer for Christian Unity. When the walls that divide human beings in races, or cultures, or ideologies begin to crumble, when possibilities are made available to those who time ago did not even dare to dream, unity is possible.
We all know about Martin Luther King’s dream: … that one day this nation will rise up and live out the true meaning of its creed: "We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal." And… that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin but by the content of their character. Today we are witnesses to the fact that the underlying racism that still shows its ugly face in America has received a severe blow. Barack Obama, the son of an African man from a village in Kenya and a white woman from Kansas, an unusual interracial combination, born in the 50th state, raised by his grandparents, a man who had to overcome incredible odds, has made it to highest position anyone can think of in this time in history, in this 21st century. Some people, at least some people, enough to vote him into office, did not judge Barack Obama for the color of his skin but for the content of his character.
The stranger has come home. A wall of separation is beginning to crumble. It is a dividing wall that in the minds and hearts of many is still standing; a wall that divides peoples into opposing groups, into different cultures; a wall that does not allow the richness of differences to flourish by keeping those who are different at bay; a wall that very often keeps sibling against sibling, wife against husband, and parent against child. But that wall is crumbling, not just by the pounding of single accidental event. The pounding has a long history, way beyond the rise of the Civil Rights Movement.
If I can bring your attention to the passage read this morning, It is in Christ, who according to God’s Will, as a plan for the fullness of time, [that God has purposed] to gather up all things in him, things in heaven and things on earth. It is in Christ that the walls of separation are broken down; he makes peace possible; he is the one who brings reconciliation between human being and God and among humans themselves. In Christ, the stranger has come home. President Obama was a stranger in many ways and someone who represents the underrepresented—and everybody else now—he has come home.
So we can claim, and we can proclaim that in Christ we are no longer strangers. So let us look at Jesus Christ breaking down the wall of separation.
I. HE MADE A NEW HUMANITY.
Our text this morning places us in the context of the early church and its struggles. A church that was apparently divided by strained cultural tensions between the Jewish and the Roman/Greek Christians with their different customs and worldviews. It was a fledgling church in a time where believers gathered in households and, in spite of the deeply rooted tradition of being hospitable to the stranger, the stranger was often left out. The unbeliever was a stranger, but the one who was different was also a stranger.
But the writer to the Ephesians pointing to the blood of Jesus as a symbol of his sacrifice makes clear that it was not in vain. As the veil of the temple, the veil that symbolized the separation between God and the fallen human race, was torn in two when Jesus died at the cross, this sacrifice breaks down all the walls that divide human beings and makes a new humanity.
Perhaps, a new humanity is still a project. A new humanity would imply the expectation of new relationships; humans loving humans; people embracing people. A new humanity would imply a new set of rules. As the text goes: He has abolished the law with its commandments and ordinances, that he might create in himself one new humanity. A new humanity implies change, a constant transformation. Quite a project!
But God’s projects are promises. A new humanity is a project that has possibilities. God’s transformation in Christ takes place! The signs of the kingdom very frequently appear when we are about to fall into despair. And what America witnessed these past few months is a sign of the work of Christ in human lives. Hatred, bigotry, prejudice, and racism can and will be defeated.
As a faith community we have the opportunity to flesh out what Jesus started. We can be people that welcome the stranger; people that because they have met the Savior, and have committed themselves to walk with him, reflect his character and love the way Jesus loved.
The stranger can come home; the wall has been broken down by Jesus Christ,
II. HE MADE PEACE.
Peace, what an elusive word! Who doesn’t want to have peace? At the personal, individual level, peace may be related to being home, or coming home. It is when all things are all right; when everything is the way is supposed to be. Relationships are peaceful, there is no want, there is no pain, and joy is at the center of life. The world seems to be a better place.
But such a state of bliss is elusive in this life. We all know about pain; we all experience suffering, sometimes to a point that it seems unbearable and makes us question our whole existence. Even more, since we are born to be related to our neighbor, being part of family, or a network of relationships, since we are created to be part of a community, peace is possible for one when it is possible for all.
The writer of Ephesians points out that Jesus Christ made peace through the cross. He reminds us of the unjust and violent death that continues to appeal to us because through the death of Jesus Christ we are set free. Paradoxically, the cross is a symbol of death and suffering and at the same time of new life; and this new life is a life of peace. But peace for one is only possible when there is peace for all.
As we are waging two wars and we see conflict all over the world; as we witness violence in the streets and in homes; when we see families broken, couples divorced, and children separated from their parents, we question if peace is possible here and now or whether is just that state of bliss reserved for life beyond this world.
By faith we embrace the Savior who went to the cross to make peace and called us to a mission, a mission of making peace. When we come together, when we embrace one another, when we love our neighbor, when we feed the hungry, cover the naked, and visit the imprisoned, we are making peace. They are perhaps just seeds of peace. But when the seeds are sown the signs are there and we are seeing those signs of peace of the kingdom of God.
There is peace for the stranger that has come home! Christ made peace through the cross, broke down the wall of separation and,
III. HE RECONCILED US
The text we read this morning seems to conclude that as a new humanity we are part of a new “household.” “You are no longer strangers and aliens, but you are citizens with the saints and also members of the household of God…” Jesus has reconciled us, reunited us. We were separated, divided, far apart from one another and now we are brought together to be a family—a family of families.
The household of God is this enterprise, this adventure, this little world we call the church, and there is no better way to portray the church than as a family. We are a family, a very special family where everybody is welcomed. It is a place for reconciliation; a place where we come together overcoming all kinds of barriers because the wall of separation was broken down by Jesus Christ.
We are family of people who are different, diverse, and colorful. Yet, we are one. We may have different opinions, different customs, and different ideas. We may disagree in many ways, but we can also agree to disagree. We have been reconciled and Christ brought us together to be united in our diversity.
We are a 300 year old congregation. The oldest Baptist Church in the state. We have endured the pass of time; we have prevailed over many obstacles; we have dealt with conflict and overcome; we have pressed on and here we are, the Household of God in Old Mystic. Let us be a household of reconciliation where the stranger can call it home. Let us be a family of families, a family with many colors, many cultures, and many strangers, all following the steps of our Lord Jesus Christ.
In his inaugural address the president spoke about the remaking of America. It is not going to be easy; the economic downturn is perhaps the worst in the last 70 years. Our country’s reputation has being tainted by allegations that detainees have been tortured. The number of people who are unemployed or underemployed is growing. We are living difficult times. But we, the church, we have faith. We believe. We have put our trust in Jesus Christ. Let us be an example for the whole nation of people who love one another, who work together, who build together, who are the household of God, a place where the stranger has come home.
Old Mystic, CT
January 25, 2009
Ephesians 2:11-20
Jesus Christ is the cornerstone, the foundation of our lives, our peace, and the architect of a new humanity. In his death he has reconciled us with God and with our fellow human beings, broken the walls of differences and separation, and he made peace as he brought us all together into his household so there are no more strangers.
What an extraordinary combination of events and celebrations took place this past week! Our nation, in a unique historic moment, a moment so much awaited by many, a moment that perhaps even the most optimistic onlookers had doubts it would ever happen, witnessed the inauguration of the first African American president in history. It was not by chance, I believe, that this singular event coincided with the observance of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Day and the beginning of the week of prayer for Christian Unity. When the walls that divide human beings in races, or cultures, or ideologies begin to crumble, when possibilities are made available to those who time ago did not even dare to dream, unity is possible.
We all know about Martin Luther King’s dream: … that one day this nation will rise up and live out the true meaning of its creed: "We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal." And… that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin but by the content of their character. Today we are witnesses to the fact that the underlying racism that still shows its ugly face in America has received a severe blow. Barack Obama, the son of an African man from a village in Kenya and a white woman from Kansas, an unusual interracial combination, born in the 50th state, raised by his grandparents, a man who had to overcome incredible odds, has made it to highest position anyone can think of in this time in history, in this 21st century. Some people, at least some people, enough to vote him into office, did not judge Barack Obama for the color of his skin but for the content of his character.
The stranger has come home. A wall of separation is beginning to crumble. It is a dividing wall that in the minds and hearts of many is still standing; a wall that divides peoples into opposing groups, into different cultures; a wall that does not allow the richness of differences to flourish by keeping those who are different at bay; a wall that very often keeps sibling against sibling, wife against husband, and parent against child. But that wall is crumbling, not just by the pounding of single accidental event. The pounding has a long history, way beyond the rise of the Civil Rights Movement.
If I can bring your attention to the passage read this morning, It is in Christ, who according to God’s Will, as a plan for the fullness of time, [that God has purposed] to gather up all things in him, things in heaven and things on earth. It is in Christ that the walls of separation are broken down; he makes peace possible; he is the one who brings reconciliation between human being and God and among humans themselves. In Christ, the stranger has come home. President Obama was a stranger in many ways and someone who represents the underrepresented—and everybody else now—he has come home.
So we can claim, and we can proclaim that in Christ we are no longer strangers. So let us look at Jesus Christ breaking down the wall of separation.
I. HE MADE A NEW HUMANITY.
Our text this morning places us in the context of the early church and its struggles. A church that was apparently divided by strained cultural tensions between the Jewish and the Roman/Greek Christians with their different customs and worldviews. It was a fledgling church in a time where believers gathered in households and, in spite of the deeply rooted tradition of being hospitable to the stranger, the stranger was often left out. The unbeliever was a stranger, but the one who was different was also a stranger.
But the writer to the Ephesians pointing to the blood of Jesus as a symbol of his sacrifice makes clear that it was not in vain. As the veil of the temple, the veil that symbolized the separation between God and the fallen human race, was torn in two when Jesus died at the cross, this sacrifice breaks down all the walls that divide human beings and makes a new humanity.
Perhaps, a new humanity is still a project. A new humanity would imply the expectation of new relationships; humans loving humans; people embracing people. A new humanity would imply a new set of rules. As the text goes: He has abolished the law with its commandments and ordinances, that he might create in himself one new humanity. A new humanity implies change, a constant transformation. Quite a project!
But God’s projects are promises. A new humanity is a project that has possibilities. God’s transformation in Christ takes place! The signs of the kingdom very frequently appear when we are about to fall into despair. And what America witnessed these past few months is a sign of the work of Christ in human lives. Hatred, bigotry, prejudice, and racism can and will be defeated.
As a faith community we have the opportunity to flesh out what Jesus started. We can be people that welcome the stranger; people that because they have met the Savior, and have committed themselves to walk with him, reflect his character and love the way Jesus loved.
The stranger can come home; the wall has been broken down by Jesus Christ,
II. HE MADE PEACE.
Peace, what an elusive word! Who doesn’t want to have peace? At the personal, individual level, peace may be related to being home, or coming home. It is when all things are all right; when everything is the way is supposed to be. Relationships are peaceful, there is no want, there is no pain, and joy is at the center of life. The world seems to be a better place.
But such a state of bliss is elusive in this life. We all know about pain; we all experience suffering, sometimes to a point that it seems unbearable and makes us question our whole existence. Even more, since we are born to be related to our neighbor, being part of family, or a network of relationships, since we are created to be part of a community, peace is possible for one when it is possible for all.
The writer of Ephesians points out that Jesus Christ made peace through the cross. He reminds us of the unjust and violent death that continues to appeal to us because through the death of Jesus Christ we are set free. Paradoxically, the cross is a symbol of death and suffering and at the same time of new life; and this new life is a life of peace. But peace for one is only possible when there is peace for all.
As we are waging two wars and we see conflict all over the world; as we witness violence in the streets and in homes; when we see families broken, couples divorced, and children separated from their parents, we question if peace is possible here and now or whether is just that state of bliss reserved for life beyond this world.
By faith we embrace the Savior who went to the cross to make peace and called us to a mission, a mission of making peace. When we come together, when we embrace one another, when we love our neighbor, when we feed the hungry, cover the naked, and visit the imprisoned, we are making peace. They are perhaps just seeds of peace. But when the seeds are sown the signs are there and we are seeing those signs of peace of the kingdom of God.
There is peace for the stranger that has come home! Christ made peace through the cross, broke down the wall of separation and,
III. HE RECONCILED US
The text we read this morning seems to conclude that as a new humanity we are part of a new “household.” “You are no longer strangers and aliens, but you are citizens with the saints and also members of the household of God…” Jesus has reconciled us, reunited us. We were separated, divided, far apart from one another and now we are brought together to be a family—a family of families.
The household of God is this enterprise, this adventure, this little world we call the church, and there is no better way to portray the church than as a family. We are a family, a very special family where everybody is welcomed. It is a place for reconciliation; a place where we come together overcoming all kinds of barriers because the wall of separation was broken down by Jesus Christ.
We are family of people who are different, diverse, and colorful. Yet, we are one. We may have different opinions, different customs, and different ideas. We may disagree in many ways, but we can also agree to disagree. We have been reconciled and Christ brought us together to be united in our diversity.
We are a 300 year old congregation. The oldest Baptist Church in the state. We have endured the pass of time; we have prevailed over many obstacles; we have dealt with conflict and overcome; we have pressed on and here we are, the Household of God in Old Mystic. Let us be a household of reconciliation where the stranger can call it home. Let us be a family of families, a family with many colors, many cultures, and many strangers, all following the steps of our Lord Jesus Christ.
In his inaugural address the president spoke about the remaking of America. It is not going to be easy; the economic downturn is perhaps the worst in the last 70 years. Our country’s reputation has being tainted by allegations that detainees have been tortured. The number of people who are unemployed or underemployed is growing. We are living difficult times. But we, the church, we have faith. We believe. We have put our trust in Jesus Christ. Let us be an example for the whole nation of people who love one another, who work together, who build together, who are the household of God, a place where the stranger has come home.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
