Resurrection
– a word that brings to mind images of an open tomb, a large
stone rolled to the side, angels sitting either inside or on top of
the tomb. It brings to mind images of two disciples running to the
tomb – but only one going in; images of one woman named, Mary,
or three women running away screaming in terror. Or even of, as was
told last week by Patricia, a very humble and ashamed Peter, facing
a forgiving Jesus who, instead of showing judgment simply says, “come
and have breakfast.” These are all images of resurrection, of
Easter and of life taking on new meaning as the result of this event.
Before moving more fully into the message this morning, let’s
take a moment and stop and pray together. God of all creation, may
the words of my mouth and the meditations of our hearts gathered in
this place, be acceptable in your sight - for you are our shepherd,
our guide, and our redeemer. Amen.
To
begin, I want to take just a moment and thank Patricia for her message
last week. I don’t know about all of you but I needed to spend
some time in a place like this and think about the tragedy that unfolded
almost two weeks ago. I needed to feel the pain and offer prayers
for the victims and their families. I needed to be challenged to think
about our responses to situations like this realizing that this is
not the last time we will face such a tragedy. But what better place
to struggle and pray and talk about all the elements involved. Thanks,
my friend, for your words, your courage, your leadership and your
compassion in a very difficult time. What a privilege it is to work
alongside you. Now, if you all remember, Patricia shared a simple
phrase offered by Jesus to “Come and have breakfast,”
and I would like to move out from there – both in the story
and in the attention paid to what is happening in the world.
First,
a reminder about the situation that surrounded that simple invitation
to breakfast. The last time Peter had seen Jesus was in the Garden
of Gethsemane when, in an unusual act of violence, Peter cuts off
the ear of one of the servants of the high priest. From there Peter
follows the crowd to the Temple courtyard where he promptly denies
knowing Jesus, not once but three times. The next thing he knows,
Jesus is crucified and it’s seemingly over. Peter returns to
fishing, as do four other disciples. Amazing how quickly they resumed
their previous lives once Jesus died. But then comes resurrection.
Because of Jesus and what happens at the tomb that Easter morning,
each of these disciples is resurrected, their lives are reborn by
a simple invitation to come and have breakfast. Peter is restored
to his place again by two simple words found at the end of that passage.
Those words were the same offered at the beginning: follow me. Each
of these five disciples is reborn, their passion is reignited, and
their lives are forever changed. You see - resurrection isn’t
simply about being raised from the dead. Resurrection is any time
someone goes from any kind of death to new life, thus the scriptures
read this morning.
We heard a somewhat lengthy account of three stories found in Acts.
One of them concludes the story of Saul (who will become Paul five
chapters later), knocked to the ground and immediately challenged
and converted by the voice of Jesus to let go of his past and begin
a new life – no longer persecuting the Christians, but of supporting
and expanding their missions and ministries. Saul is ultimately resurrected
from his deathly past by a trusting disciple who takes him under his
wing. Life becomes recognized in a new way and Paul becomes the most
powerful figure in the early church transformed by the experience.
We heard the story of Aeneas who is resurrected from paralysis by
Peter – this same Peter who some time earlier had simply gone
back to fishing and who had been brought back into the fold by a forgiving
Christ. Finally the story of Tabitha / Dorcas – a saintly woman
brought back from death to life through Peter, this same apostle.
All of these are individual stories of resurrection, of moving from
some form of death to a more profound form of life after death. Resurrection,
however, doesn’t stop at individual stories.
Many of you know that I love the Gospel of John. I love it because
it’s very much like detective story. There are multiple meanings
in almost every chapter, and this morning’s reading is certainly
one of those. On the surface we simply have Jesus at the Temple in
Jerusalem walking around and being challenged once again by folks
who just don’t seem to get it. And once again, Jesus tries to
make as plain as possible to them just who and what he is. He is God
on earth, one with the Creator who ultimately and continually brings
life out of death and order out of chaos. But if you look a little
deeper into this reading, both the time of year and the location of
the story are extremely important. All too often we simply pass over
these details. Not so this morning.
This
conversation takes place during the celebration of Hanukkah or The
Feast of Dedication – a feast that commemorates the very act
of bringing a desecrated, destroyed, dead Temple back to life; of
a flame or light that simply would not die, and thus provided opportunity
for new life to be born. The location where Jesus is carrying on this
conversation is in the portico of Solomon, also very important. It
is the specific location in the Temple that looks over the Kidron
Valley and up to the specific place where the Messiah is to appear:
just above the Garden of Gethsemane. You remember the garden –
it’s where Jesus accepted the “cup” being given
him. Let’s just say that the combination of these two elements
is vital to the story. Both are about resurrection – not just
of an individual, but a Temple and a people. But do they get it? No,
and they continue to live as those who are dead to an understanding
of who this is. Resurrection is standing before them…resurrection
and life. See what I mean about the Gospel of John?
Finally, I need to tell you that the centerpiece of the Gospel of
John can be found in the chapter just following what was read this
morning. It is the final piece of the scriptural puzzle for us this
morning. It is found in two very simple verses in the story of Lazarus.
I just quoted one of them. In chapter 11, verses 25-26 a question
is asked of Mary – the sister of Lazarus. It is the question
for us today. Jesus said to her, “I am the resurrection and
the life. Those who believe in me, even though they die, will live,
and everyone who lives and believes in me will never die.” And
here’s the kicker. He then says to her, “Do you believe
this?” That’s my question to you this morning. Not just,
do you believe this, but what do you believe about this and how has
it changed the way you live your life?
Most
times when I stand before you in this pulpit I challenge us to be
more aware of the community around us, to look as Jesus would look
and act as Jesus would act. As important as those things may be, there
has to be something underneath it, even before those action-oriented
statements. That which is at the root of who we are as Christian people
is resurrection. Do you believe it?
One of the things I’ve shared with my overtly diverse Disciple
class is the need for confidence. Each of us needs to be confident
in who we are and what we believe. We need to be able to articulate
our personal beliefs in such a way as to convince others that we know
where we stand and why. We need conviction. My criticism of my denomination,
the denomination that will be ordaining me in a couple of months,
is that we seem to have lost much of that conviction. We seem to have
lost the ability to take a stand. That must change if we are to be
reborn and resurrected. What is true of the denomination is all too
true for many of us. We are so afraid of hurting someone’s feelings,
of being seen as too liberal or too evangelical, or of being seen
as judgmental or politically incorrect that we keep quiet. The church
is dying as a result. Friends, that has to change. We must, with great
confidence, learn to articulate, give permission to voice who we are,
and therefore, also learn to disagree. And in order to learn to disagree
we first have to come to terms with what we believe.
William Abraham – author and theologian makes this point. He
states, “It is only when we communicate with confidence our
beliefs in things like the resurrection that we give others the opportunity
to learn and grow or the opportunity to disagree. It is in making
our points with clarity that we open opportunities for growth in both
sides of things like the resurrection equation. Yet, we back off so
as not to hurt or alarm. Had the early church taken that approach,
we would not be here today.” I agree. How do we spread good
news if we don’t know or haven’t experienced what makes
the news good? It is in taking stands for what we believe that we
learn and grow, gain confidence, and engage.
Last
week I listened to a sermon that challenged us to rethink how we might
view things like immigration, even gun control. Now, in as much as
you may not hear us talk about our opinions from this pulpit, we do
need to raise the issues that are relevant and surrounding us today.
We need to provide opportunities to talk about them, question them,
move them, and grow from our agreements and disagreements within them.
We need to study how each may relate to our role as Christians living
in a world where a mentally ill student can kill dozens. What’s
our response? It can’t be silence. But there is more to it than
that. A week ago Monday I had the privilege of spending almost seven
hours with Rev. Hadley Edwards, Senior Pastor of Bethany United Methodist
Church – New Orleans. Jim Krause and I got a tour of the city
– and not just a tour, a tour through Hadley’s eyes. He
talked of the political and social ramifications of the hurricane,
of the graft and corruption. He talked of the injustices, the hope,
and specifics about how Bethany will continue to bring hope to what
is still a devastated city. I saw the Bethany church, a church resurrected,
born again out of ten feet of water, and rebuilt partially by our
hands and our gifts – signs and actions of a resurrection faith.
There is, however, still a lot of death awaiting new life and we need
to stay the course as people of the resurrection and continue to help
bring hope and life to New Orleans. We also need to take some stands
and challenge those who may be preventing that hope from arriving
sooner.
Thursday afternoon I watched the 90-minute MSNBC Democratic Presidential
candidates debate. I heard of 3,333 soldiers who have now been killed
in Iraq, and of the tens of thousands of Iraqis killed, many of them
innocent children. I wondered what our response might be to the war,
to these candidates, the Republican candidates, and what our role
might be in all of it. Whether you stand on one side or the other,
we need to continue to talk about our role as a church and how we
might create opportunities for resurrection on multiple levels.
Friends,
opportunities for resurrection are all around us. But I have to tell
you that I am afraid. I’m afraid we have become all too apathetic
or fearful to all of those areas in need of resurrection attention.
I fear that we have become, as my Disciple class will also tell you,
one of the seven churches found at the beginning of Revelation. My
particular fear is that we fall into the lukewarm trap of Laodicea,
a trap similar to what Jesus faced with the religious authorities
of his time. I find it amazing that the stained glass window that
stands boldly before us each Sunday and the reference it reflects
comes directly from the author’s response to the lukewarm church
in Laodicea. John quotes the angel in Revelation 3:19-22 as saying:
“I reprove and discipline those whom I love. Be earnest therefore,
and repent (or turn another direction, take a stand, be bold). Listen,
I am standing at the door, knocking; if you hear my voice and open
the door, I will come in to you, and eat with you, and you with me.
In other words: reignited the flame, allow me to be your shepherd,
or be lost.
Each of these sections related to the seven churches closes with these
words: Let anyone who has an ear, listen to what the Spirit is saying
to the church.”
Tough
words, but appropriate particularly for us. John sought to stir them
up, to get them passionate again, and to keep them moving forward
in their work in the kingdom of God. Christ seeks the same from us.
He is knocking on the door – calling us out.
So, my sisters and brothers, I need to ask you, in the midst of all
of this – do you believe in resurrection? And not just that
one we celebrate on Easter Sunday but those that can happen here and
now? Do you believe that we have a responsibility as Christian people
to offer it and to bring it to any who might be in need of it? What
are you doing about it? The truth of our message, the foundation of
the Good News can be found in two words – resurrectional transformation.
They are very similar to what Jesus said to Peter – follow me.
Easier said than done. I am profoundly convinced that one of the major
reasons we continue to decline as a denomination is that we are afraid
to take a stand on who we are and what we believe. We become lost
in the seeming need to be all things to all people. Take a stand,
friends. Hold fast but allow yourselves to be sharpened by those with
whom you disagree. Over the next four months you will be hearing about
our own Social Concerns Committee’s priority on offering workshops
and opportunities for us to learn how to disagree. I give you permission
to voice your opinions about issues of faith – or anything else
for that matter. And, by the way, feel free to change your opinions,
feel free to learn and grow from those with whom you disagree, feel
free to sit and talk, learn and understand, search and find. Allow
yourselves to be resurrected. It is what makes us the church. So,
do you believe in resurrection?
And to close: what do I believe? I believe that God has revealed himself
uniquely in the person of Jesus of Nazareth. I believe that Jesus
was God incarnate, God on earth walking and talking, healing and challenging
those seen as religious authorities. I believe he acted decisively
for the sake of those in need, and for our redemption. We are truly
made new and made whole in and through Christ if we open ourselves
to the power inherent there. I believe we have a unique responsibility
to continue in God’s transformational resurrection, to offer
this relationship to any and all who might seek it or be in need.
I believe that actions speak louder than words and that by our actions
others will know that we are his disciples, actions of faith combined
with actions of social justice. I am a disciple of Jesus Christ and
I believe that lives can be healed and transformed by that same power
that raised Jesus from the dead. We are people of the resurrection
who seek to transform places of death and despair and make them into
stations of hope and inspiration. We are people of the resurrection
you and I and Jesus continually stands at the door of our hearts –
knocking, hoping to be let in and engaged with passion. We are people
of the resurrection who have a mandate of transformation. Now you
know where I stand. Bring it on and let’s grow together, learn
from each other, be born again by each other’s understandings
and together transform the world. Amen? Amen!
©Brad
Beeman, 2007. Permission is given for brief quotation with attribution.
All other rights reserved.
Resurrection
Faith - Here and Now