Sermon - Following His Lead (Easter 4B)

 Easter 4 – Year B                                                                April 25, 2021
John 10:11-18                                                                     Panzer Liturgical Chapel

For the next several Sundays of this Easter season, we will hear some familiar themes from the Gospel of John. Jesus makes many imaginative “I am” statements. “I am the light.” “I am the bread of life.” “I am the living water.” “I am the way, the truth and the life.” When the guards come out to meet him in the garden, they are asked about whom they seek. Jesus says simply, “I am.”

In today's gospel lesson, Jesus tells us, “I am the good shepherd, and I know mine and mine know me, just as the Father knows me and I know the Father.” In other chapters, John has presented Jesus as teacher, finder, healer, feeder, and forgiver. In this reading, Jesus is presented as the Shepherd who will lay down his life for his flock.

I don’t know how many of you have had this experience, but there was a day a few years ago when I looked outside my front door and all I could see, hear, and smell were sheep. Our local shepherd was moving his flock from one field to another and walking down our street seemed to be the straightest path. It was fascinating to watch from a distance the way that the sheep were kept in check by the work of one man and his dog alone.

It was a pantomime – I could not hear what was being said from so far away, but I knew that both the dog and the sheep recognized and followed the shepherd’s voice. You could see it in the way that they moved. For over 30 minutes I sat and watched, transfixed by the coordinated movements of shepherd and dog as they moved the sheep along. It was clear that the dog had his own responsibilities in the process, but also obvious that the sheep knew the shepherd’s voice. When he indicated it was time to leave the inclined orchard where they were grazing, they left the soft, long grass and followed him down the road, the dog encouraging any stragglers to keep moving on.

Jesus' use of sheep imagery has strong Old Testament roots. Psalm 23 is not only the best-known Old Testament passage but also the one to use sheep and shepherd figuratively – that is, for spiritual purposes. But this is not an isolated incidence. In Ezekiel 34, Israel is described as God's flock and the rulers (kings) as its shepherds – but not really good ones. Rather than feeding the sheep, the rulers alternately ignored the flock and preyed upon them instead of protecting them. As a result, the flock is scattered and devoured by the wild animals.

It is God who promises to restore order – he is the shepherd of his people, gathering them and leading them to good pasture.[i] Think about the relationship between the Pharisees and the people. They were the ones given the task of protecting the people, but in the end, they only wanted to protect themselves. And then came Jesus. So, let’s break this passage apart.

Jesus tells us, “The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep.” The Greek expression is unusual; the word we translate as "lay down" literally means "to put" or "to place." That’s where we get our expression, "putting your life on the line.” But it’s not just about being willing to die. This passage is about more than Jesus risking His life. Jesus as the Good Shepherd is a role model for all who follow him.

Verses 11-13 speak both of Jesus' character as the Good Shepherd and of the care that we receive as His flock. Whether we admit it or not, we need someone who will be ultimately concerned with us. Remember, sheep are not created for autonomy. They cannot order their own lives r survive alone. And truth be told, neither can we. Our faith or trust in Christ is dependent on our confidence that the Shepherd is looking out for us – that he is more concerned for us than for his own welfare. Verses 9-10 suggest that his care includes salvation, nurture, and abundant life. These benefits are not just one-time, past gifts of a savior who died for us, but the ongoing, present blessings and concern of one who rose again,[ii] provided not by miraculous decree, but by the care given to one another in a love-based community.

In verses 12-13 Jesus talks about a hireling – this person is not attempting to harm or steal the sheep. He is a protector, caring for the sheep, but with a different level of commitment than the shepherd. When push comes to shove, he is more interested in protecting himself than the sheep. In contrast, for the shepherd, there is nothing more important than caring for and protecting the sheep.

In verses 14 – 16, Jesus talks about knowing one another. I’m glad that our relationship with Jesus is deeper than being sheep to our shepherd. We are reminded that it’s not enough to be known by Jesus – we must know him, too. This connectedness extends to the rest of the flock. We are connected to one another. This gets lived out with the life and mission of the church. Even more so, it must be reflected in the way we treat other people and the world in which we live.

Jesus doesn’t draw people to himself alone. If Jesus is the good shepherd, the model shepherd, he is also the one who models for us what it means to care for others. That includes drawing people into the flock, even those who had not been included before. Everyone is a potential brother or sister. Everyone falls under the care and compassion of the Good Shepherd. We cannot simply absorb the care of the Good Shepherd directed toward us; we must share in His concerns and participate in His mission in the world. When we are in relationship with Christ, we are to pursue his agenda of one flock, one shepherd.[iii] This is, of course, connected to the summary of the law we open worship with each week – Love God and love neighbor is all we do.

Finally, verses 17-18 remind us that Jesus’ ministry and relationship with God did not end at his death. Through the Resurrection, we see the depth of love expressed through a series of related and necessary events. Ministry will go on. People will be brought into the fold. These verses make it clear that teaching about the good shepherd is part of our ongoing task between Jesus' resurrection and ours.[iv]

Many preachers end their sermons on this passage by asking the people in the pews if they are willing to lay down their lives for Jesus. But I’m not going to ask that today. Instead, I’m going to reframe the conversation, and ask a bigger question. What it means to live sacrificial lives? What does it mean to give up ourselves to others, even those we may not know, we may not agree with, even people we may not like?

I spent some time this week following the trial of the officer who murdered George Floyd in Minneapolis last May. I breathed a sigh of relief at the guilty verdicts. It was good to know that a jury of 12 people saw what I saw… undeserved cruelty and disregard for another human being. This officer was immediately remanded into custody and will live a substantial part of his life in prison.

At the end of the proceeding, the judge thanked the jury for serving, shouldering the extra burden of participating in a trial watched around the world. These people gave over three weeks of their lives to listen, watch, discuss and decide. They represented their community in determining what justice would look like for Mr Floyd and for his family.

But those were not the only people who gave up something to participate in that trial. I was especially struck by the witnesses to the crime, those who filmed the encounter, those who called out to the police while begging for the life of George Floyd… a teenage girl and her little sister… an off-duty EMT who narrated the care that Mr Floyd should have been receiving… a 911 operator who called the police leadership herself as she watched the proceeding on steaming footage nearby.

They gave up a lot to speak up for George Floyd – at the scene, in the police and lawyer interviews afterward, and in court – where their faces were broadcast for the world to see. And do you know what many of these said in their testimony? That they wished they had done more. That they should have physically intervened. That they felt guilty because what they had done wasn’t enough. The clerk who called the police wished he had done less… all of this tragedy for the possibility of a counterfeit $20 bill.

We don’t know for sure what would have happened if any of those bystanders had tried to help George Floyd, but we intuit that it would not have gone well. As it was, no one else was arrested or injured among those who were witnesses. There was not riot at the scene. But the people who stood up and said what they saw under oath – even when they thought it wasn’t enough – they did something very remarkable… something sacrificial and very sacred.

Remember a couple of weeks ago when Brooke talked about people who had their 15-minutes of fame? I do. And I thought at the time, and again this week, that sometimes our actions are remembered for a moment, and sometimes they are remembered forever. Maybe you don’t know the names of those people who stood up for George Floyd, and maybe you do. But even if we don’t remember their names, Darnella Frazier – 17 years old, Judeah Reynolds – 9 years old, Jena Scurry and Christopher Martin, among many, went above and beyond what many of us might have done.[v] It was a sacrificial act of great importance, and the kind of thing Jesus was talking about.

There are several comparisons going on here – We see Jesus as the Good Shepherd calling to and looking after his flock – that’s us – that’s everyone - trying to keep us on the path. But we are also called to take on that role, putting the needs of those who journey with us above our own needs – protecting them from danger, and caring for them as more than someone who is merely paid to care.

In the beginning of our Christ journey, we have to think about how to employ the lessons that Jesus taught. We weigh the differences between what’s best for us as individuals and what’s best for the people we interact with, making both good and bad choices. As we grow in faith and love, caring for others becomes second nature. We still consider our own needs, but often the needs of others take precedence. Think of the parent/children relationship, or the those between lifelong partners or long-term friendships. Our reading from 1 John asks us to consider the call that Jesus has on our lives, and how we are to serve others, not to fulfill a commandment or rule alone, but out of the abundance of love that Christ gave for us. The 23^rd Psalm reminds us that by following this shepherd’s way, goodness and mercy will follow us all the days of our lives, and we will dwell in the house of the Lord, forever.

Jesus is our Good Shepherd. How nice it would be just to be sheep. Then Jesus could take care of us and we would not have to do anything hard. But that is not the plan. "Send us as shepherds to rescue the lost, to heal the injured, and to feed one another with knowledge and understanding." That is our prayer, and that is God's plan. Jesus is the cornerstone of our salvation. There is no other name by which we can be saved. So, it only follows that as Jesus has laid down his life for his sheep, so we are to follow his lead and make our lives available to others who are in need.[vi]

Peace, Deb 

(c) Deb Luther Teagan, April 2021

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[i] http://www.cresourcei.org/biblestudy/bbjohn13.html
[ii] http://www.cresourcei.org/biblestudy/bbjohn13.html
[iii] http://www.cresourcei.org/biblestudy/bbjohn13.html
[iv] http://www.cresourcei.org/biblestudy/bbjohn13.html
[v] https://www.startribune.com/who-are-the-witnesses-in-the-derek-chauvin-trial-for-the-killing-of-george-floyd-in-minneapolis/600042794/
[vi] http://sio.midco.net/danelson9/yearb/easter4.htm

Sermon - Witnesses to the World (Easter 3B)

3rd Sunday in Eastertide April 18, 2021
Luke 24:36-48 Panzer Liturgical Chapel

Twenty years ago, I used my last one of these… a film canister. 2001 was the year when we gave up on our 35mm camera and embraced digital photography for the first time. Today, we hardly remember what it was like to have to use a whole roll of film before taking them to be processed and printed. Today, we plug our photos or memory sticks into easily found kiosks, printing only the best shots. Gone are the days when we get back a whole sleeve of unusable or out-of-focus prints. Even more, most of us don’t even print pictures… our best-saved memories are available at the touch of the screen or in the palm of our hand.

This week, this film canister became a valuable reminder of the resurrection. Once upon a time, we took film pictures, and, using light and electrons, they were burned onto the negatives. Maybe we remembered what pictures we would find, but until the film cartridge was opened and the film processed and pictures printed, we didn’t understand fully the beauty or reality of the images we took. It’s only in the aftermath that they all made sense.

I think the same is true with our understanding of the resurrected Christ. Jesus’ resurrection is revealed in the days after his first appearance, much like a canister of undeveloped film. The resurrection isn’t just the thing that happened in the pre-dawn hours of Sunday morning. Resurrection can only be understood in the ways Jesus is encountered in all the days that followed, even today.

When we think of resurrection sightings, we think first of Easter morning, Mary and the disciples hurrying to the tomb to prepare his body for burial. But we have already seen in the last couple of weeks that Jesus is much more available than we remember. On Easter Sunday, we saw Mark’s account of Jesus’ resurrection, as recounted by the angel sitting where Jesus had been laid. Last week, we heard of Jesus appearing to the disciples and of Thomas’ need for his own “Jesus” experience.

Resurrection witness

Today, we see the resurrected Jesus as recorded by Luke. The passage is prefaced by the familiar story of Jesus’ encounter with two disciples on the road to Emmaus. In the beginning, they do not recognize him, and when prompted, they begin to recount the story of Jesus' death and resurrection. Jesus converses with them, explaining to them the meaning of these last few days. When they arrive at their destination, they invite Jesus to stay and share a meal. But instead of acting as a guest, he acts as host, blessing the bread and serving it. With this, their eyes are opened to who he is, and he disappears from their sight. Rather than being afraid, this is a big ah-ha moment for them. Of course, that was Jesus… “We should have known; didn’t our hearts burn with joy as he was talking to us today.” Their encounter with Jesus changed them forever.

Theologian Stanley Hauerwas wrote a wonderful book called The Peaceable Kingdom where he defined the defining mark of the Christian community. He writes:

The resurrection of Jesus is the ultimate sign that our salvation comes only when we cease trying to interpret Jesus' story in the light of our history, and instead, we interpret ourselves in the light of his. For this is no dead Lord we follow but a living God, who having dwelt among us as an individual, is now eternally present to us making possible our living as forgiven agents of God’s new creation.[i]

He wants us to confront the question, “What do we believe about Jesus?” not as an intellectual or emotional exercise, but by looking at how we live our lives. Does knowing Jesus change us? Do people see the differences between those who claim Jesus and those who do not? Are we giving Jesus a good name?

As we meet the disciples today, they are confused and grief-stricken. They are wandering around, unsure what to do next, which is exactly how each of us acts when we encounter death and tragedy. And so, when the two disciples encounter Jesus on the road to Emmaus and then recognize him in the sharing of a simple meal, it feels miraculous. So they do what we would expect. They set out immediately (gr. “the same hour”) to return to Jerusalem to share the good news with those gathered – Jesus appeared to them. But even when Jesus later joined those gathered in Jerusalem, they couldn’t believe their eyes.

Jesus, understanding their doubt, invites them to touch his body and then asks for something to eat. Luke is greatly aware that his Greek readers were skeptical about such a thing as rising from the dead. Jesus is offered some fish and eats it as a sign that he is truly himself. Ghosts don’t have bodies nor do they eat.

Jesus concludes this appearance with evidence from Scripture. The law, the Prophets and the Psalms all speak of the Servant having to suffer, die and rise. This Good News affirms Jesus as the Messiah and promises forgiveness of sins, news that must be shared. Transformation is at hand. Those who have seen Jesus’ risen Body are now to become a part of this Body by living His life and giving His life to the world.[ii]

We don’t understand the resurrection. There were no witnesses, no first-hand accounts, no explanation by the risen Jesus as to what actually happen. In his book, The Universal Christ, Father Richard Rohr brings a decidedly 21^st-century vibe to the discussion as he describes the resurrection as a sort of Einsteinian warping of time and space, releasing Jesus’ relevance for humanity and us as “ubiquitous (or constant), personal, and attractive for those who are willing to meet Reality through him”.[iii] In other words, the resurrection makes Jesus available to everyone.

Jesus appears to the many in the days after his resurrection, and while it seems the same – he has a body, people can touch him, he eats and drinks and breathes on them – they also know that he is not the same at all. Through their encounters with the risen and glorified Jesus, people’s lives were reoriented – refocused – repurposed. No matter how it happened, Jesus’ resurrection makes a lasting impact on the world. The rational thinker in us may want to know how to explain it, but in the end, it remains a mystery, reminding us that our faith is defined by our willingness to believe even what we don’t understand.

So, what do we learn from this encounter with Jesus? First, it’s a reminder that Jesus is the Messiah. He is the fulfillment of the Hebrew scriptures – he came to live, to suffer, and to die. Perhaps this is Jesus telling them that everything he experienced was not in vain. Alone, this doesn’t feel like good news.

Fortunately, there is a second part to Jesus’ message – an assurance that death is not the end of the story. Jesus fulfilled scripture by being raised on the third day. It was no mistake, no accident, no coincidence – Jesus’ life, death, and resurrection fulfilled what had been prophesied of years before. Jesus did not list these chapter and verse but alludes to many references to the Son of Man being lifted up on the third day. This is a significant chain of events. So much so, that my Lutheran preaching professor taught us that Jesus had to live, die, and be raised from the dead in every sermon. “If you don’t remind of this them every week, they might think we’re just here for the coffee.”

The third part of Jesus’ message is the necessity of passing this message of repentance and forgiveness on to others. If we compare translations of this verse or dig into the Greek of the passage, this phrase has a little more nuance as we think about the connecting words. We see the word, “and” and think of it as a simple + sign – putting two like things together. But the translation of the Greek word “eis” means something more… it’s not just about addition but is really a movement towards or into. It can refer to going to or into some place, but it can also refer to the movement towards a specific goal. Thus, the phrase can be translated: "repentance leading to the forgiveness of sins."

This emphasizes that Lucan message that the goal or purpose of proclaiming repentance is that sins might be forgiven. Another good clue is that every time hamartia (= "sin") is used in Luke, it is coupled with apheimi (= "forgiveness"). Our goal in pointing out sin and calling for repentance has to be the forgiveness of sins.[iv] This is certainly a concept that we need to keep working on.

So, what does all this mean for us? That’s the question of the day. Stan Hauerwas reminds us that the resurrection of Jesus isn’t just about a moment in time. It is about the way we live our lives as those who claim his name.

Living a life of faith in Jesus Christ is both complicated and simple. We have to believe the impossible, and act out the life that Christ commanded. We are to be agents of repentance, on our way to forgiveness of sin. Unfortunately, that means that we have to acknowledge sin, the sin of our lives, and the sin of the world. And we have to be willing to turn around – to repent – and be willing to live our lives a different way. That’s really hard because in our humanity we want to be comfortable, Jesus is calling us to the most uncomfortable act of all… living life in his name.

Jesus calls us to be witnesses, giving evidence of how the risen Jesus has come into our lives. This is not just about telling the story in words. Christian witnesses do not simply repeat what we have heard. We are called to give our whole life as evidence of the resurrection. Belief in the resurrected Jesus can't be argued or explained. Even Jesus didn't try that. He knew that the truth had to be seen, had to be touched, had to be experienced in his flesh and the witness of his disciples.

We are witnesses when we can invite someone to look into our homes, our families, our friendships, our work, our checkbooks, -- and find Jesus there. We are witnesses when we allow ourselves to be touched by folks who are lost and afraid. We are witnesses when we hear the pain others experience and not only believe it but try to give their pain a voice. We are called to raise a voice for change, not only to benefit ourselves personally but to hold up the whole body of Christ. We are witnesses when we live in ways that defy any explanation other than the presence of the risen Christ within us.[v]

We read in the Bible of Jesus’ resurrection journey. We see it in his meetings with the disciples and other followers. But it is not their story alone. Richard Rohr ends his chapter on The Resurrection Journey in this way: “Resurrection is contagious and free for the taking. It is everywhere visible and available for those who have learned how to see, how to rejoice, and how to neither hoard nor limit God’s ubiquitous, unfettered gift.”[vi]

We are witnesses to the world of the risen Christ. That is both our gift and our responsibility… Thanks be to God.

Peace, Deb

(c) Deb Luther Teagan, April 2021

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[i] Hauerwas, Stanley, ­The Peaceable Kingdom, (1984) University of Notre Dame Press: South Bend, p 90.

[ii] Gillick, Larry, http://liturgy.slu.edu/3EasterB043006/theword_gillick.html, 2006.

[iii] Rohr, Richard, The Universal Christ, Convergent Books, 2019, p 178.

[iv] Stoffregan, Brian, http://www.crossmarks.com/brian/luke24x36.htm, 200

[v] Grant, Kristen, “Fresh Evidence,” The Christian Century Foundation, May 4, 2003.

[vi] Rohr, p 187.

Sermon -- Living the Resurrection Everyday... (Easter 2021 - year B)

 EASTER DAY, Year B                                                       April 4, 2021
Acts 10:34‑43; 1 Corinthians 15: 1.11; John 20: 1‑18

Resurrection is a stumbling block for many people. We say that we believe in it in the Nicene and Apostle’s creeds, but most of the time they are just words, for we are unsure what resurrection looks like. We’ve hedged the celebration of Easter with a secure wall of flowers and chicks, eggs and baskets, signs of new life and new beginnings. For many folks, a cruise-control Easter experience is just fine. Sit back, relax, and enjoy the ride - not too deep, not too emotional, but comfortably predictable.

But Easter is about more than the coming of Spring – which is obvious if you live in the Southern Hemisphere where winter is just around the corner – and more than the sweet silliness we can get sucked into. To take seriously the miraculous nature of what this day represents, we have to try to understand something that for many is unbelievable. We have to accept the truth of the resurrection, even if we don’t know how it happened. With Mary as our witness, we learn the impossible news… Jesus is risen. Indeed.

Early in the morning on the first sunrise since the Sabbath, Mary Magdalene is on her way to the tomb when she realizes she is going to encounter a technical difficulty. Who will roll away the stone? It's a big stone... and potentially a big problem. But she continues on. She knows she has a job to do – Jesus’ body must be prepared for permanent burial. What happens next is unimaginable. The stone has already been moved, the grave is open, and that is just the beginning. Not even her friendship with Jesus has prepared her for what she will see next. The tomb is empty. Jesus is not there. Terrified, she runs to tell the disciples what she has found.

We have no account of the resurrection, only the aftermath. Mary Magdalene thought that Jesus' body had been stolen. Even the appearance of two angels does not trigger a belief that Jesus could be alive and back with them. Mary's faith comes from the words of Jesus. When he speaks her name, she knows him and sees him as he is. She gets it. This is a redefining moment for her and the world.

Hearing Mary's cry of alarm, two disciples race to the cave. Peter sees the empty tomb, but that’s all he sees. He does not believe Jesus has risen until he appears to the disciples later that day. The beloved disciple, John, saw the empty tomb and immediately knew that something miraculous had happened. He can't put a name to it, but he knows that this is no ordinary day. Jesus is alive. He is risen. Indeed.

Faith in Jesus' resurrection is generated in many ways. Since no one saw the resurrection actually happen, we can only frame it within our experiences of God and Jesus through scripture in the story that’s been handed down to us. We know about the resurrection in at least three ways: thru the word... in relationship... and evidence that the story is true.

In the Word, we hear and then tell the story of Jesus' resurrection. Through the biblical story, we hear about the events of the morning and we see the effect that it had on everyone who believed. Jesus' resurrection turned defeat into victory. The Jewish leaders and Roman leaders intended to crush this little uprising. And what better way to do it than to kill their leader? Jesus' resurrection and the coming of the Holy Spirit at Pentecost literally breathed new life into God's people... it set them on fire for God. It sent them out into the world.

Through the resurrection we have Relationship... On Thursday night I quoted from Henri Nouwen, who reminded us that we don't think our way into a new kind of living - we live our way into a new kind of thinking. This means we have to live, confident in the truth of the resurrection, even if we don’t understand how it happened. We have to live as this newly defined relationship with God and Christ means something to us.

What does it mean to be Easter people? How do we act? If Easter (and recreating it every Sunday) are about believing and celebrating the resurrection, how do we do that? I believe it is in how we treat one another. It is about living in the light of the resurrection every minute of our lives.

And in living we gain Evidence ... Since we have not seen the resurrection event, what evidence is there for us that it happened? It is in our lives... evidence that God has changed us, transformed us and believes in us still. It is in the way that we relate to others, those we love and those we are supposed to hate. Resurrection is about new life, new life given as an unbelievable but evident gift. Now the question becomes if resurrection is available to us, are we ready to receive it and live it ourselves?

In her book Beirut Diary, Sis Levin describes what it was like to be the wife of a hostage taken in the Middle East. Her husband Jerry Levin, a CNN bureau chief and reporter, was kidnapped walking from their apartment to his office on Ash Wednesday, March 7, 1984. For 11 months, Sis struggled to keep her faith alive as she watched government officials, including those in the US, wring their hands, failing to get him released. Sis and her network of family and friends took many chances, talking with anyone who could keep her husband’s name in the forefront of everyone's mind.

Through her experience, Sis began to see the struggles in the Middle East through new eyes. She recognized the humanity in her husband's captors, and appealed to them as such, speaking out to anyone who would listen, addressing the issues of century-long conflict as one who lived it. And people noticed. Almost one year later, on February 14, 1985, Jerry was allowed to escape by those who were holding him hostage. Encountering Syrian troops who helped him to safety, he was reunited with Sis in Germany the next day.

As they shared their experiences, they came to realize how much their faith in God pulled them through. For Sis, this played out in her continuing activity in the Episcopal Church. But for Jerry, it meant much more. When he entered captivity, he was a non-practicing Jew, and even more, was about as close to not believing in God as you can get. The first five weeks of his solitary imprisonment were the darkest days of his life, and when he started talking to himself, he was afraid he was going crazy. Even so, he felt a great need to talk to someone. And lying on his cramped pallet, chained to the floor, he began to think about himself in relationship to the world, to eternity, and to others in a way that he never had before. He considered the fact that people had been talking to God for several thousand years and they had not gone crazy. Could he do the same?

Over the next ten days, his belief unfolded like a blossoming flower, and he found that not only did he believe in God, but also in the Jew called Jesus. He was drawn to the beliefs that Christians profess but find hard to live out. And he thought over and over of the need to follow Jesus' words ‑‑ Love the Lord and love your neighbor and the rest will fall into place. And when he finally knew he could pray and mean it, he thanked God for the solitude that forced him to think. Then he prayed for his family. He prayed for his captors. And he forgave them as he began to see how bitter and desperate, they were.

On Christmas Day they asked him if he needed anything special. "All I need is a Bible," he said. And the next day, there it was. With it came the realization that even though he was locked in chains, behind closed windows and doors, and guarded with guns, he was already free. If he got a chance to escape to freedom from his captors, he would take it. And whether he made it to safety or not, he would be OK.

Sis & Jerry Levin have experienced the resurrection. They have peeked into the tomb, lived there a while, and then gone out to proclaim the truth. “He is not here. He is risen.” Many have not understood their lack of bitterness at the time they spent apart. Many have not understood how they could bring the issues and needs of the "enemy" to the world's conscience. CNN didn't want a first-hand witness to the violence; they just wanted someone to report it. But in the end, the Levins’ experience is summed in one of Jerry's earliest comments on his first day of freedom. "I don't think for one minute that it was an accident that a Christian wife in an Arab state working to free her Jewish husband from Muslim terrorists was able to make a difference. Those kinds of coincidences only come from God."[i]

The tomb was not the end but is the place where we begin to see what resurrection means for us. The disciples didn't have to move the stone and neither do you and me. We simply have to walk forward, enter the mystery, and God will meet us. For Jerry Levin, being kidnapped in Beirut was not the end, either. His 11-month captivity meant that he was able to begin his life all over again, with different priorities and goals.

Jerry and Sis formed the Jerry Levin Peacemaking Institute. Until they died in 2020 – Jerry in February and Sis in September – they spoke to groups of all sizes and ages about the necessity of being instruments of peace in the world.[ii] The JLPI hosts a website filled with videos and printed resources for children, youth, and families to learn about how to practically apply the practice of peacemaking to their own lives. All of this work is an extension of their faith journeys and the call they believe we all have to live out the resurrection every day. It is a goal they believe can be accomplished if people of faith will live their lives in the light of the resurrected Christ.[iii]

The story of Easter is not just a story about a man being raised from the dead. It includes his message of radical love and peace and invites us to live out the story for ourselves every day. So as you think about your life this blessed Easter Day, remember these fateful words: “He is not here. He is risen.” Indeed!

Peace, Deb

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[i] Levin, Sis, Beirut Diary, InterVarsity Press: Downers Grove, IL, 1989, p. 189.

[ii] https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/us/sis-levin-international-peace-activist-and-arts-patron-dies/ar-BB18ZV45

[iii] https://jerrylevinpeacemakinginstitute.org/

Sermon - Live to Serve - Maundy Thursday (B)

Sermon – Maundy Thursday (B)                                                     April 1, 2021
Panzer Liturgical Service
Exodus 12:1-4, (5-10), 11-14  •  Psalm 116:1-2, 12-19  

1 Corinthians 11:23-26  •  John 13:1-17, 31b-35

We call this day Maundy Thursday. It’s a unique descriptor for the Holy Thursday, taken from the Latin word mandatum, which means mandate or commandment. Paul uses this theme in tonight’s epistle reading – “Do this in the remembrance of me.” The synoptic gospels, Matthew, Mark, & Luke, give us the historical account and the rubrics for this last supper – the one we reenact each week in the Eucharist. But the gospel of John fills in all the blanks. John’s account of the evening, found in chapters 13-17, gives us a significant look at Jesus’ theology… his understanding of who he is and who we are when we follow him. Yes, Jesus at the last supper gives us a mandate, but it’s not just to share this holy meal often.  

Tonight, we see Jesus once again acting against stereotype. We talked last Sunday about how Jesus is a different kind of King. Instead of riding into Jerusalem on a powerful horse, he comes in on a humble colt or donkey, transportation for the poor. And when they arrive at the room for a simple supper, he again acted in an unexpected way. 

In the normal order of things, Kings don’t wait on people. So, when Jesus takes off his outer garments and makes things ready to wash the feet of his disciples, they were shocked, so much that Peter confronts Jesus about his actions: 

Peter: Lord, you’re not going to wash my feet…

Jesus: Peter, I have to wash your feet.

Peter: Well, then, wash my head and my hands also

Jesus: Just your feet, Peter… pay attention, this is not just about being clean.

It was common practice for guests to have their feet washed up entry into a person’s home. Most travelers wore sandals and the roads were dusty and dirty. Cleaning feet was a way of keeping the home clean, but also an act of hospitality for the traveler, to make their visit more comfortable. But usually, it was the servants who performed this duty, not the host himself. And so, for Jesus to put himself into that lesser role would have been an extremely dramatic and uncomfortable thing to witness.

Of course, this was nothing new. Jesus often tried to teach the disciples humility. Sometimes they got the message, but more often forgot to consider it all in the big picture. Washing their feet was an ultimate act of service. And afterward, he commanded them to continue the practice of serving one another, and not to wait on someone else to serve them. 

We don’t often wash one another’s feet these days… in most mainline traditions, this Maundy Thursday service is the only time that this part of Jesus’ story is reenacted. Touching another person’s feet feels very intimate. I think it makes both people feel very vulnerable. And as with many of the things that Jesus asks of us, when we are open to that vulnerability, we are open to the Christian life in ways we might not have imagined before. 

More than anything, Jesus’ actions tonight teach us important lessons that should inform the way we relate to other people and live out our faith every day.

1st lesson – Hospitality is an important manifestation of our faith. Jesus not only calls us to welcome people into our lives but also to meet the needs that they have. One of the things that I love about having German friends is the way that hospitality is lived out in many routine encounters. When we get together with our German neighbors or friends from our village band, certain rituals are always followed. First, you shake hands or hug every person who enters the group. You greet them with a phrase like “Grüß dich!” Or “Grüß Gott!” And then usually a question, “Wie ghets?” “How’s it going?” “Es ghets mir gut” or “Gut, Danke” “I’m doing fine.” And then someone will offer you something to drink… which you are not supposed to turn down. And when you leave, you don’t just say goodbye to the host and guest of honor, but to everyone you have had a conversation with during this encounter. “Danke für die Einladung – thank you for the invitation” and “Bis bald! – see you soon.”

When we first encountered these rituals, it felt very personal… very intimate… and very foreign. But they have taught me a lot about what hospitality is all about. And what a glad burden it is to be in relationship with other people.

2nd lesson – This encounter teaches us that no job of service is too lowly for any of us. We applaud people like Mother Theresa who served in the worst slums of India and think of that as a special calling reserved only for those who are the holiest believers. I’m certainly no Mother Theresa because I must confess that sometimes I feel like God has called me to ministry that doesn’t take my strengths into account. 

At one church we attended, I felt guilted into helping with the homeless shelter for families the church hosted every other month. But they were in a bind and I couldn’t think of a plausible excuse to get out of helping. Silly me. In the end, the small acts of service that I performed, like helping people make up their beds, or cleaning the showers, or preparing breakfast the next morning, were incidental to the way I heard people talk about their lives and struggles. I saw how this ministry was giving families a second or third or fourth chance at life. Did I need a seminary education to do this job? No. But it did remind me that ministry isn’t just about teaching theology or biblical study. Ministry is also about meeting people’s needs so that they are ready to tackle discipleship in whatever ways they can.

3rd lesson - By ritualizing this story and making it a part of our worship today, we are living out the biblical story. There’s this thing called muscle memory. It is our bodies’ way of helping us to do things without having to think too much about them. It’s how we can ride a bike or drive a stick shift, even if we haven’t done it in years. It’s how we get to the bathroom in the middle of the night without having to turn on the light. Role-playing is an important part of what worship is all about. We celebrate the Eucharist and remember that Christ is with us in the bread and wine. We share a common meal where everyone sits in equal seats. We leave the table to live and serve in the world, just as Jesus told us to do.

Washing feet helps to remember that we, too, are called to be a different kind of people, ones who gladly receive and serve, as Christ has called us to do. This reminds me of a quote from practical theologian, Henri Nouwen: You don't think your way into a new kind of living - you live your way into a new kind of thinking.

Washing other people’s feet was the most astonishing act of service that Jesus ever did. He presided over a meal that unites us all at the same table… one bread, one body, one Lord… And in the next 24 hours, he was arrested, tried, beaten, stripped, and killed as his ultimate acts of service to all of humankind. And because we know the rest of the story, even as we approach the darkness of Good Friday or Karfreitag (Grief Friday in German), we see the resurrection on the horizon and know that Jesus’ ministry was not stopped by his death.

Some people do need to have their feet washed – the elderly, the sick, and others who cannot do this for themselves. But the real lesson here is that we should all be humble enough to do for others, serving out of love and devotion to God.

Jesu, Jesu, fill us with your love, 
show us how to serve
the neighbors we have from you. 

I wish that we could wash each other’s feet tonight. But Jesus understands. I continue to believe that wearing our masks, washing our hands, taking the vaccine when it is offered to us, and not taking unnecessary risks for being exposed to or passing on an undiagnosed infection with COVID-19 are worthy acts of service in our current environment. 

Jesus calls us to serve. Our life’s mission is to see that while those acts of service may change from season to season, the underlying love is always the place from which we begin. Remember, we love because God first loved us. So let us serve the world in love. Amen.

Let us pray: 

Blessed are you, Lord God.
The basin and the towel are signs to us of your Son’s servanthood.
You have made us partakers of Christ and of one another.
As we live out our call to service, give us grace
to count others more important than ourselves,
to love our enemies,
to make peace.
Send the Spirit of truth to keep alive in us what Jesus taught and did,
that our words may carry his good news, and
that our lives may bear the shape of the cross
of the One who lives and reigns with You and with the Holy Spirit,
One God, forever and ever. Amen.
— adapted from A Footwashing Liturgy by Reggie M. Kidd.
https://re-worship.blogspot.com/2012/02/closing-prayer-footwashing_28.html

2021 – with COVID-19 restrictions still in place, we did not come forward to wash feet, but I leave this rubric in place as a reminder of the attitude desired of us when we come to serve one another.

While we go about the ritual of foot or handwashing, please remember that this is a symbolic act of devotion. We will only wash and dry one hand or foot, and no one is required to participate. After your foot or hand has been washed, please follow through by washing the hand or foot of the person who follows you. We have clean water in the bottles that you can pour as needed, and small towels for drying.