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LINKS TO THE SERMONS |
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| “Jack 3: 16” There was one time in my ministerial career when I was invited to speak to a class in a public high school. The teacher who phoned taught sociology and they were discussing the influence of religion in America – they were inviting representatives of the various religions to come and would I come and represent Protestant Christianity? A pretty serious responsibility but I was up to it. I knew what they wanted, some historical data, dates and places and principle players. I got through that as quickly as possible and then went to what I consider to be the heart, soul and essence of Protestant Christianity –experiential religion – that religion is not so much about doctrine and belief systems and proper behavior governed by immutable holy laws, it is about encounter with the divine and the transformation that takes place in the heart in response to that encounter with the living God who loves us. When the class was over I thanked the class and the teacher and they thanked me and I headed for my car. But, the teacher followed me out – left the class unsupervised. He thanked me again and I thanked him again but he still didn’t leave. There was obviously something else he had to say. I began to worry that he was unhappy about my presentation which had come dangerously close to evangelizing. So, I just waited for him to get it out. A moment passed while he searched for just the right words, then he spoke, “I perceive that you have something that I don’t have.” It was a statement but the tone was that of a plea. That is exactly why and how Nicodemus came to Jesus. Came to Jesus at night – had his reputation to protect after all. He was a teacher, had been his whole life. But his idea of religion was rules of conduct and correct beliefs recited in memorized creeds and prescribed prayers. He had heard about this preacher from Nazareth and some of the things he taught and he said inside himself, “I perceive that he has something I don’t have.” It’s one of the most important scripture passages in the Bible, these verses in John 3. It contains that metaphor that is so engaging that whole groups of Christians have incorporated it as part of their name – not just Christians but “Born Again Christians.” Sometimes the news commentators drop the last part and just call them “Born Agains.” And this is the only place in the Bible where the image appears; this story isn’t in the other gospels. Nicodemus is the only person in the Biblical record who was given that instruction, “you must be born again (or ‘anew’ in the newer translation) That’s why the conservative churches resist the newer translations and stick with the King James. “Born Again” has a ring that isn’t quite equaled by “Born Anew” or “Reborn.” It could be argued that Jesus chose this mystical imagery precisely because he knew the question in the mind of Nicodemus and that he needed to be introduced to experiential religion – then he added all that about the wind blows where ever it chooses – you can’t see it but you feel the power. It could be argued that if Jesus were speaking to “Born Agains,” more mystical types, he might put the emphasis elsewhere, perhaps on sound doctrine and social justice. That’s an argument for another sermon. The issue that Jesus hoped to address with this image was Nicodemus’ self assurance. He knew everything there was to know about religion and what it took to please God, and he had done it all. Still he felt this emptiness and saw in Jesus someone who seemed to have something he did not. Jesus had cleverly moved religion out of the realm of what he could understand or control. Nicodemus kept shaking his head saying, “How can this be?” And he was forced to come to terms with the fact that salvation was not primarily something he accomplished through knowledge or obedience, it was something that God did for us. Birth is something that is done for you while you are essentially helpless; your mother did it for you physically, and new birth, spiritual birth, is something God does for you. It could be argued that the points made in this story were intended for Nicodemus alone and not to be interpreted as truths to be universally applied. This is a private conversation with Nicodemus and the imagery is not repeated in Jesus general teachings. You could argue that, except for that other verse – arguably the most quoted verse in the Bible – John 3: 16. You know that verse even if you have never been to church. Those people who wear it printed on T shirts at televised sporting events have seen to that – or the guy who always gets the seat right behind home plate so the TV camera will be sure and transmit his message all over the country before every pitch. I saw one T shirt during the play-offs that said Jack 3:16. He had apparently become so familiar with the verse that he knew John by his more casual name. Everyone in the room can recite it from memory, “For God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish but have everlasting life.” This is obviously not just a comment for Nicodemus’ consumption alone – it is a universal affirmation - it is for the world and for the ages. God gave his Son out of love to the end that everyone, the whole world, might receive the gift of everlasting life. Some translations say, “eternal life.” Neither translation does justice to the intent of the Greek. The word that is translated as “everlasting” or “eternal” is in fact as much a qualitative word as a quantitative one. Its emphasis is not about longevity and isn’t meant to be understood as beginning when you die. It is a quality of life that is abundant as a fruitful harvest – rich not just in quantity but in essence, abundant in joy, adventure, possibility, relationship with others and with the God who is the source of our being. That’s something like what Nicodemus and that high school sociology teacher perceived that others had and they did not. How do you get it, it’s a gift of God through the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ. It isn’t earned or achieved, it is received. The experience of receiving it is rather like being born again. It is good news we have to share with the world. And it is good news, the best possible news. Never could figure out why preachers try to motivate with guilt or fear when the gospel is so inviting. Guilt and fear are not good motivators anyhow, because they don’t last long enough. When I was a kid it was the standard approach of preachers. I’d go to revival meeting when I was a kid and the preacher would threaten that I better repent because I could go out side after the meeting and get hit by a truck. So, I would go and repent, and then when it was over, I would go outside and, wouldn’t you know it, not a truck in sight. My parents and teachers tried to motivate me with guilt and fear with about the same success. But, dangle the carrot – show me something really desirable, and you’ve got me for a lifetime. Tell me God loves me and wants to offer me abundant life, transformation, not someday when I go to heaven but right now. Tell me it’s like being born again and everything is fresh and new and you see life through new eyes, like being blind and suddenly having your eyes opened. You won’t have to threaten me, I want that. What we have to offer the world is a God who loves them, who knows them all by name, who wants to hold them in his arms and show them the way to life abundant. It’s good news. The trouble is that people haven’t had it announced to them; or it has been announced in a way that made it impossible for people to receive it as the good news it is. It feels more like a pitch and preachers come off like peddlers. That’s the mission and ministry of the church, to make the good news of the love of God in Christ known, to a people who are accustomed to bad news and manipulation. When I was headed to the Large Church Conference in Florida I considered what my answer would be when asked about the size of my congregation. I knew the question would come up. “What’s your name, where you from, and how big is your church was the standard introduction litany at the registration table. I knew that as soon as I said 350 that people would start to drift away in favor of someone more important. So I practiced my answer in advance. When the question came it was phrased like this, “How many people do you have?” How many people are you responsible for? I said, “We haven’t done a complete census but I figure about 50,000. That got their attention. And I thought it showed suitable restraint; John Wesley claimed the whole world as his parish. How many does God love and how many did he give his only begotten Son to save? But, I was conservative, counting just the folks within the easy reach of the church who have not yet been touched and transformed by the good news of the gospel. Fearing that a crowd was likely to gather around this pastor with 50,000 people, I added that, “So far there are 49,700 of those folks we haven’t gotten to yet.” Will we? Will we risk making the invitation to folks who may not receive it graciously because they have been manipulated too many times before? Will we put ministries in place that will make the silent witness of God’s love through his disciples who are known by the love they have for all God’s children? A letter went out a couple of weeks ago introducing the idea of an Endowment For Ministry at this church, inviting especially you who have been part of this church for a lifetime to enable it to witness to God’s love to the next wave of Covina people in effective and convincing ways. We won’t be able to do it without a sizable endowment which you have the means to put in place if you have the will and commitment. The next wave will pay 20 times as much for that house as you did; they will be house poor – little disposable cash. They will need child care, after school programs, tutoring (perhaps in English) senior adult day care, on and on – All things that we have the facilities for and the perfect location for. They won’t be able to support the cost of all those ministries. What if we offer them anyhow? What if we offer them as an expression of our love and of God’s love for all his children? How will we pay for the program and the personnel - and the advertising, including TV, that it will take to engage the 50,000 and let them know what we have to offer? You not only need ministries that are relevant and timely, you need a marketing strategy. If we don’t put the money in place now while we can, I fear that as we continue to age and as our resources are more strained, we will retreat within ourselves. We will minister to our own as best we can and when the last “Amen” is said, turn out the lights and lock the door. I believe God is calling us to do something extraordinary to witness to his unconditional and all-inclusive love. I believe God has given us a ministry to the next generations, to the 50,000 of God’s children, our sisters and brothers, whom we haven’t reached out to yet – to offer them new birth in the name of the God who so loved the world that he gave his only begotten son. One of the most searching and poignant questions in all of scripture was that put to Isaiah and recorded in the sixth chapter of his book. “Whom shall I send and who will go for us.” Sounds like a question that might be asked in an auditorium to recruit volunteers for a dangerous mission; everyone nervously waiting to see who will step forward. But consider the fact that when God asked the question, there was no one in the room but Isaiah. When the question of “Who” is directed right at you and no one else, it becomes less a question and more a command. I can’t state this too strongly; I believe God is asking the question, “Whom shall I send, who will go?” and he is looking right at us. God so loved the world - the world, no exceptions, no exclusions. The world may not be our parish but a piece of the San Gabriel Valley is. “Whom shall I send, and who will go?” |
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