The psalm we sung today is actually part of the gospel of Luke, it’s a prophecy spoken by the old man Zechariah after the birth of his son, who was later to be known as John the Baptist. Zechariah, who had not spoken a word throughout his wife’s entire pregnancy was suddenly filled with the Holy Spirit and said this about his newborn son, “And you, child, shall be called the prophet of the Most High, for you will go before the Lord to prepare the way, to give God’s people knowledge of salvation by the forgiveness of their sins.”
How do you know that you are saved? What should you look for? Should you look for little signs? Like whether you are a forgiving person or whether you read your Bible every so often or whether you come to church a lot? All those signs will fail you one day. There is only one place that you can look and see, and hear and know that your salvation is in the hands of God: The forgiveness of your sins. John the Baptizer went into all the region around the Jordan, proclaiming a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins. The forgiveness of sins was John’s goal. The forgiveness of sins is God’s goal for you. The forgiveness of sins is Jesus’ goal for the world. The forgiveness of sins is the goal of every single worship service at Saint Peters because, without your hearing of that forgiveness, you cannot truly believe that you have been saved by God. Trusting in anything else is simply not enough.
There are a lot of different ways to go about “doing” church. A lot of different services you could go to, types of music to listen to, places to worship, theological arguments to dissect. But without hearing God’s forgiveness, it doesn’t matter how traditional, liberal, conservative or popular any church service is . . . it’s simply missing the point. As your pastor, my goal is simple at each service and during each sermon: Dinstinguish between God’s laws which point out the sins in our lives and the Gospel of Jesus Christ where we can believe in the forgiveness of those sins. Only when the Law is given full rein can we see that our salvation lies only in the forgiveness of Jesus Christ.
Forgiveness is a gift from God. But it doesn’t always seem like a gift. That became very clear to me as I began working on this sermon. In fact, when I think about forgiveness in my own life, it can seem like a very heavy burden to bear. Forgiveness is not only a gospel issue, but it also finds its way into our lives as a terrifying law. I know that forgiveness is also a heavy burden for many of you. And the more wonderful we make it sound, the more guilt we bear when we cannot or will not do it ourselves.
Forgiveness seems pretty easy at first. It sounds nice. But, before you are in the mood to start forgiving anyone they need to, you know, say they are sorry, that type of thing. They need to repent! They need to ASK for forgiveness. Because if there is no repentance or no acknowledgement of a mistake, something just doesn’t seem right about forgiving.
But what happens when repentance just isn’t there? What if no one says they are sorry? What if they say they’re sorry, but you still can’t forgive? What then? Jesus said, “For if you forgive others their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you; but if you do not forgive others, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses.” Ouch! What if you just CAN’T forgive someone? What if you’ve tried and they won’t admit that they are wrong? That they have hurt you? What then? And what does that mean for your salvation? “if you do not forgive others, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses.” What if your bitterness is just too strong? What if you know in your head that it’s the right thing to do, but just can’t make your heart truly believe in it? Would YOU still be forgiven? Would you still be saved?
To forgive someone involves sacrifice. Someone needs to die. I know that that probably sounds a little hyperbolic, but have you ever done something really awful to someone you love? And then had to say you were sorry? I understand that forgiveness, in itself, doesn’t involve blood or anything like that, but, in the moment, when you ask for it, you just cannot continue to exist the way you were before. It is impossible. The old you, the one who hurts people and feels no shame, has come to an end and the new you is left to watch and wait and see what the future holds. Will you be forgiven? Asking forgiveness is not an easy thing to do. It opens up new possibilities only through the death of the old.
What happens when you are the one waiting to forgive and repentance never comes? What do you do when you have been hurt and no one knows? What if the person who hurt you has died? Or was a stranger? Or is someone you want to protect from the knowledge of your pain? What then? What if the pain is old? What if the hurt seems too silly to say anything? What if you are waiting to forgive but no one ever says they are sorry? God’s goal is your forgiveness, but what if you just can’t follow in His footsteps?
Forgiveness always involves a sacrifice. Who has hurt you? Maybe someone at work, or in your family, or at church? What feelings are you carrying? Bitterness? Anger? Resentment? All of the above? If you forgive, without ever being asked to do so, that means you will lose something. The anger, the resentment and the bitterness must be sacrificed. And by now they have become close friends. Are you willing to just let them die? When you forgive someone who never asked for that forgiveness, you are the one who has to die. And while your heart keeps beating, a part of you comes to an end.
When you begin to understand what it means to forgive you’ll understand why Jesus had to be born. When you realize that with forgiveness comes sacrifice, you’ll understand why he had to die. Each one of us sins day in and day out. We hurt people. We often either don’t realize or don’t want to admit what we have done. We inflict pain daily on the ones we love and those we work with, we forget the needs of the destitute and become lax in our prayers for the sick and dying. We intentionally defy God and worship our own unholy Trinity: our needs, our wants and our feelings. And we are called to repent of the things we do, Jesus says, “The time is fulfilled and the kingdom of God has come near; repent, and believe in the good news.” But we don’t. We choose not to.
So, God had to make a decision. If he relied on us to say, “We’re sorry”, to repent or to ask forgiveness, the sacrifice would never have been made. We would have all died without hope. So God became the necessary sacrifice. God forgave you. The forgiveness of sins became His goal. Not because you deserved it. Not even because you asked for it. But because you didn’t and he loves you. He gave you the knowledge of your salvation by forgiving your sins.
Jesus said, “For if you forgive others their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you; but if you do not forgive others, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses.” Jesus gave us an example to follow, by sacrificing himself in order to forgive our sins. However, Jesus was more than an example. Do not for one moment believe that Jesus was simply an example for you to imitate. God knows that we do not want to forgive. God knows that we do not know how to forgive. God knows that we cannot truly forgive so he BECAME the sacrifice, not just for our sins, but for the sins of the world.
If you cannot forgive those who have hurt you, trust in God’s forgiveness. Trust that He has covered their sins just as He has covered yours. If you cannot bear to sacrifice your bitterness, trust in Jesus’ sacrifice. “I believe, help my unbelief!” “I forgive, help my unforgiveness!” Because, in the death of Jesus Christ, all of us have died along with our resentment, our hate, and our anger. For this is why Jesus was born, to give God’s people knowledge of salvation by the forgiveness of their sins. That goes for you, for me, all those we have hurt and all those who have hurt us. Forgiveness always involves a sacrifice and Jesus is the lamb who was slain who takes away the sins of the world. Jesus has died for you and your sins are forgiven. Amen.
Showing posts with label Atonement. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Atonement. Show all posts
Thursday, December 10, 2009
Tuesday, October 20, 2009
Sermon for October 18th
Imagine what it must have been like to have watched Jesus die on the cross. Imagine what it must have been like to have been one of his followers, or one of his disciples, who thought he had died for nothing. Imagine that you were someone who had hoped that he was the Messiah, the holy one of Israel who was supposed to lead his people to victory over their enemies only to see him dead and then buried just like anyone else. Imagine sitting in a room with others like you, scared that all of your work had been pointless.
But now, Jesus, the one you thought was your Messiah, the one you thought had died, was standing in front of you. And now, Jesus the one you had hoped would save you, was breaking bread with you. And now, he was forgiving you for your doubts and explaining how it had all come to pass. And now he was calling upon you to tell the story of what happened. And now he was sending you to forgive sins. How would you explain it all? How could you talk about what happened? To someone who had never believed? To someone who didn’t care?
These men and women were Jews. They followed the Torah. They knew the stories. They sang the psalms. The knew God’s promises. But they had always expected the Messiah to be a great warrior king. Someone who would lead them out of despair and inspire them to acts of greatness! To sit upon his right and his left, as the disciples James and John put it, like generals in the seats of honor beside the great king! How was anyone going to understand that this dead man, now living, was actually the Messiah? How were they to believe it?
I certainly don’t know how, or when, but these Jews began to see that the truth of Jesus’ words and the power of his life shouldn’t have been such a surprise to anyone. Jesus was written about everywhere—throughout the psalms and the prophets and engraved onto every Jewish person’s heart there was the promise of a Messiah who would suffer and die and, somehow, be called to victory. And knowing all this not only told them something new about this Jesus that they had followed, but they began to understand why he had to die and for what he had come to do.
A reading from the prophet Isaiah, written 600 years before Jesus ever stepped into this world in his humanity, “Surely he has borne our infirmities and carried our diseases; yet we accounted him stricken, struck down by God and afflicted. But he was wounded for our transgressions, crushed for our iniquities; upon him was the punishment that made us whole, and by his bruises we are healed, All we like sheep have gone astray; we have all turned to our own way, and the Lord has laid on him the iniquity of us all.”
When the Devil drives people into despair and they seek the solace of suicide to quench the sadness in their hearts—no one is with them, but Jesus alone. When our loved ones lie still, only barely breathing, so weak that we listen with trepidation for every heartbeat and are surprised when, almost suddenly, we don’t hear the breathing come again, Jesus is the only one weak enough, strong enough, to lie still with them and cover them completely with his peace. Jesus died because we are too weak to live sometimes. That’s what the Bible means by infirmities, our weakness . . . the fact that in the primes of lives we realize how fragile our bodies can be. Star basketball players die of heart arrhythmias just out of high school. Healthy babies still die of SIDS even with watchful parents in the very next room. Jesus came for them too. “Surely he has borne our infirmities and carried our diseases.” But is that all he came for? To comfort us with a little chicken soup for the soul in the troubles of the world? Not hardly.
Isaiah continues, “Yet, we accounted him stricken, struck down by God and afflicted.” Good things happen to bad people, and bad things happen to good people. We know that this is true. But when bad things happen to people we think are bad, we figure they deserved it. We applaud God for his justice! Jesus was killed for blasphemy. He called himself God and so everyone figured he got what was coming to him: death. “Come down from the cross and prove that we are wrong about you! Show us that you are God and come down!” the crowds screamed. And when he did not fly away free, “We accounted him stricken, struck down by God and afflicted.” And we agreed with God’s judgment. The disciples agreed with God’s judgment. They abandoned their master on that cross. Why did Jesus have to die? The disciples, the Jews and the Romans thought that they knew why.
But in the passage from Isaiah, the truth comes out. Imagine what it must have been like to see the living Jesus when you had believed he was forsaken by God forever. Imagine what it must have been like to realize why did Jesus really had to die? “He was wounded for our transgressions, crushed for our iniquities; upon him was the punishment that made us whole, and by his bruises we are healed. All we like sheep have gone astray; we have all turned to our own way, and the Lord has laid on HIM the iniquity of us all.” Why did Jesus have to die?
This morning little Caylyn was baptized in the name of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit. Why? So that she might know that no matter what happens in her life. No matter how far she goes astray. No matter how often she might go her own way against the wishes of her parents, or her family, or the world or the church, that the Lord has laid all of her sins on Jesus Christ. That’s why he had to die: for her. For those of you who have been baptized, you have also been washed in the blood of this lamb—in the cleansing waters of the crucified and risen Jesus Christ. Because that’s why he had to die: so that you might be saved. The Lord has laid on Jesus the sins of us all.
Do you find joy or sadness in these verses? Do you hear accusation or grace? I hope that you hear both. Why did Jesus have to die for you? Can you imagine why you might stand unworthy before God? If not, and if someone doesn’t tell you, then Jesus’ death will mean nothing for you. But if you stand unworthy and miserable before God, then Jesus’ death means everything. Your hope, your life and your salvation. Only sinners can be assured they have a Savior.
We have a little sign outside our doors that say, “All are welcome”. But let’s be honest about who, exactly, we are talking about. Only sinners are welcome here and no one else. Only hypocrites. Only people with problems. Only the helpless and the hopeless. Only the proud and self-righteous. Only the unwelcome. Only people without a chance. Only gossips and liars; murderers and adulterers. Only sinners are welcome here because they are the only ones who will ever find grace here. This place is NOT for perfect people. Not for the righteous. Not for the healthy. That’s why I know you are all welcome here. That’s why ALL are welcome, so that you and they can be forgiven. For if anyone could save themselves, then Jesus died for nothing. Until you hear that you have no hope you will not hear the joy of your salvation. Sinners are the only ones for whom Jesus Christ has died. So if you know the dread of death, know that eternal life is yours.
Why did Jesus have to die? Because you and I would have it no other way. Just like Jesus’ disciples, you and I will not take responsibility for our sins, and so, Jesus just up and died for them. He was killed because he tried to forgive. If you see blood on your hands, take heart, for it is the blood of Jesus Christ who died on the cross and has washed you clean in the eyes of God.
This is the most inspirational story that I can tell you. That your life and your joy is hidden with Christ in God. It’s more than chicken soup for the soul folks—it’s a feast of life and it is for you. And you don’t have to imagine it after all—your sin is really dead and you are now alive to God by faith in Jesus Christ alone. The faith that comes from believing that Jesus actually had something to die for—and he died for someone like you. Thanks be to God! Amen.
But now, Jesus, the one you thought was your Messiah, the one you thought had died, was standing in front of you. And now, Jesus the one you had hoped would save you, was breaking bread with you. And now, he was forgiving you for your doubts and explaining how it had all come to pass. And now he was calling upon you to tell the story of what happened. And now he was sending you to forgive sins. How would you explain it all? How could you talk about what happened? To someone who had never believed? To someone who didn’t care?
These men and women were Jews. They followed the Torah. They knew the stories. They sang the psalms. The knew God’s promises. But they had always expected the Messiah to be a great warrior king. Someone who would lead them out of despair and inspire them to acts of greatness! To sit upon his right and his left, as the disciples James and John put it, like generals in the seats of honor beside the great king! How was anyone going to understand that this dead man, now living, was actually the Messiah? How were they to believe it?
I certainly don’t know how, or when, but these Jews began to see that the truth of Jesus’ words and the power of his life shouldn’t have been such a surprise to anyone. Jesus was written about everywhere—throughout the psalms and the prophets and engraved onto every Jewish person’s heart there was the promise of a Messiah who would suffer and die and, somehow, be called to victory. And knowing all this not only told them something new about this Jesus that they had followed, but they began to understand why he had to die and for what he had come to do.
A reading from the prophet Isaiah, written 600 years before Jesus ever stepped into this world in his humanity, “Surely he has borne our infirmities and carried our diseases; yet we accounted him stricken, struck down by God and afflicted. But he was wounded for our transgressions, crushed for our iniquities; upon him was the punishment that made us whole, and by his bruises we are healed, All we like sheep have gone astray; we have all turned to our own way, and the Lord has laid on him the iniquity of us all.”
When the Devil drives people into despair and they seek the solace of suicide to quench the sadness in their hearts—no one is with them, but Jesus alone. When our loved ones lie still, only barely breathing, so weak that we listen with trepidation for every heartbeat and are surprised when, almost suddenly, we don’t hear the breathing come again, Jesus is the only one weak enough, strong enough, to lie still with them and cover them completely with his peace. Jesus died because we are too weak to live sometimes. That’s what the Bible means by infirmities, our weakness . . . the fact that in the primes of lives we realize how fragile our bodies can be. Star basketball players die of heart arrhythmias just out of high school. Healthy babies still die of SIDS even with watchful parents in the very next room. Jesus came for them too. “Surely he has borne our infirmities and carried our diseases.” But is that all he came for? To comfort us with a little chicken soup for the soul in the troubles of the world? Not hardly.
Isaiah continues, “Yet, we accounted him stricken, struck down by God and afflicted.” Good things happen to bad people, and bad things happen to good people. We know that this is true. But when bad things happen to people we think are bad, we figure they deserved it. We applaud God for his justice! Jesus was killed for blasphemy. He called himself God and so everyone figured he got what was coming to him: death. “Come down from the cross and prove that we are wrong about you! Show us that you are God and come down!” the crowds screamed. And when he did not fly away free, “We accounted him stricken, struck down by God and afflicted.” And we agreed with God’s judgment. The disciples agreed with God’s judgment. They abandoned their master on that cross. Why did Jesus have to die? The disciples, the Jews and the Romans thought that they knew why.
But in the passage from Isaiah, the truth comes out. Imagine what it must have been like to see the living Jesus when you had believed he was forsaken by God forever. Imagine what it must have been like to realize why did Jesus really had to die? “He was wounded for our transgressions, crushed for our iniquities; upon him was the punishment that made us whole, and by his bruises we are healed. All we like sheep have gone astray; we have all turned to our own way, and the Lord has laid on HIM the iniquity of us all.” Why did Jesus have to die?
This morning little Caylyn was baptized in the name of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit. Why? So that she might know that no matter what happens in her life. No matter how far she goes astray. No matter how often she might go her own way against the wishes of her parents, or her family, or the world or the church, that the Lord has laid all of her sins on Jesus Christ. That’s why he had to die: for her. For those of you who have been baptized, you have also been washed in the blood of this lamb—in the cleansing waters of the crucified and risen Jesus Christ. Because that’s why he had to die: so that you might be saved. The Lord has laid on Jesus the sins of us all.
Do you find joy or sadness in these verses? Do you hear accusation or grace? I hope that you hear both. Why did Jesus have to die for you? Can you imagine why you might stand unworthy before God? If not, and if someone doesn’t tell you, then Jesus’ death will mean nothing for you. But if you stand unworthy and miserable before God, then Jesus’ death means everything. Your hope, your life and your salvation. Only sinners can be assured they have a Savior.
We have a little sign outside our doors that say, “All are welcome”. But let’s be honest about who, exactly, we are talking about. Only sinners are welcome here and no one else. Only hypocrites. Only people with problems. Only the helpless and the hopeless. Only the proud and self-righteous. Only the unwelcome. Only people without a chance. Only gossips and liars; murderers and adulterers. Only sinners are welcome here because they are the only ones who will ever find grace here. This place is NOT for perfect people. Not for the righteous. Not for the healthy. That’s why I know you are all welcome here. That’s why ALL are welcome, so that you and they can be forgiven. For if anyone could save themselves, then Jesus died for nothing. Until you hear that you have no hope you will not hear the joy of your salvation. Sinners are the only ones for whom Jesus Christ has died. So if you know the dread of death, know that eternal life is yours.
Why did Jesus have to die? Because you and I would have it no other way. Just like Jesus’ disciples, you and I will not take responsibility for our sins, and so, Jesus just up and died for them. He was killed because he tried to forgive. If you see blood on your hands, take heart, for it is the blood of Jesus Christ who died on the cross and has washed you clean in the eyes of God.
This is the most inspirational story that I can tell you. That your life and your joy is hidden with Christ in God. It’s more than chicken soup for the soul folks—it’s a feast of life and it is for you. And you don’t have to imagine it after all—your sin is really dead and you are now alive to God by faith in Jesus Christ alone. The faith that comes from believing that Jesus actually had something to die for—and he died for someone like you. Thanks be to God! Amen.
Saturday, April 11, 2009
Sermon for Good Friday
A little girl at my dinner table recently asked me a question about Jesus over supper, “Why did Jesus choose to die?” It’s a good question spoken at an age where this issue becomes important. You see, most of her life, her mom and I have been trying to express how when we talk about God we are talking also talking about Jesus and when we talk about Jesus we are also talking about God We remind her again and again that Jesus died to forgive her sins and that since Jesus loves her, then God loves her. The lesson must at least be making some headway or else this question, at dinnertime, might not have come up.
When you hear about a murder in the newspaper, on the internet, on the radio or on TV, do you ever ask this question, “Why did that person choose to die?” No. Most of the time, nobody deliberately chooses to die. Especially at the hands of somebody else. Ernest Becker explains in his book, “The Denial of Death” that even those heroes who choose to fight in wars by jumping out of boats and running out into the line of fire can only do so because they feel pity for the person running next to them because they are worried that the other person might get hit by a stray bullet. If we could possibly be aware enough to truly consider our own death, no one would ever get out of the boat. No one would ever step out of their house. But when Jesus dies on the cross, there is a need within all of us to ask this question,:”Why did Jesus choose to die?”
We are driven to ask this question only when we realize somewhere within us that Jesus is more than just one of us, he is God himself. And for God himself to be on that cross, the creator of heaven and earth, well, there must be more to it than a simple homicide that you’d hear about on the news. Unfortunately, this also betrays something even more interesting about both that little girl at my table, and about all of us in fact: she is already trying to wiggle out of her responsibility regarding the cross, just like the rest of us sinners. “Why did Jesus choose to die?” it’s a question we sinners like to ask, because if we can explain to ourselves and to each other why God wanted to die then it gets us off the hook. Then we can sing the hymn, “Were you there when they crucified my lord,” and smirk to ourselves that “no, we weren’t there.” We can place the blame of Jesus’ death on someone else.
Our reading this evening from the book of Isaiah references this way of thinking, “Surely he has borne our infirmities and carried our diseases; yet we accounted him stricken, struck down by God, and afflicted. But he was wounded for OUR transgressions, crushed for OUR iniquities; upon him was the punishment that made us whole, and by his bruises we are healed.” We like to put the blame on God for Jesus’ death. The gospels tell us that Jesus knows he is heading for Jerusalem to suffer and die, so how can we be culpable? Why would it be our fault? Jesus must have chosen to die and we had nothing to do with it. We weren’t even there!
In fact, as Isaiah writes down a few verses later, “It was the will of the Lord to crush him with pain.” If God wanted his son Jesus to die, who was really going to stop him, not I. Yes indeed, none of us would have stopped the death of Jesus. We would have run away like the rest of the disciples, looked on from a distance, or deny Jesus in the heat of the moment.
“He was wounded for OUR transgressions, crushed for OUR iniquities.” Why did Jesus choose to die?” It wasn’t that Jesus chose to die as if he didn’t want to rather live, but Jesus had to die, it was necessary for him to die as scripture puts it, because you and I would have it no other way. He came to earth forgiving sins, casting out demons and healing the sick and so he was killed for it. Jesus didn’t whip himself to the point of death, hammer nails into his body and raise himself up on the cross—sinners like you and me did this to him. Perhaps the only good answer to the question, “Why did Jesus choose to die?” is this, “Because there was no other way to get through to you and me.” He had to choose to give us the choice to kill him, so that when he was resurrected from the dead, we would realize what we had done. So that we might realize the length and depth and breadth of our sin and then, finally, understand the full extent of what he had done on the cross.
Jesus chose to die for you, by being born on Earth and letting you kill him, so that you might realize that even though you are completely responsible for his death, just as much as any person alive 2000 years ago, Jesus has wiped your sins away in the blood of his cross. You made you choice to kill Jesus Christ and now he has made his choice to give you eternal life.
Ironically, as Jesus is dying, he says, “Father forgive them, for they know not what they do.” But the truth is, sinners back then and sinners today know exactly what we are doing, given the choice, sinners want Jesus dead. What we don’t know, is that by making our choice, God can finally make his choice once and for all in a way that we might all understand and believe. We cannot hide our sins any longer, Jesus’ blood is on our hands and on our children’s children. Thankfully, though, that same blood washes us clean in the sight of God. We have made our choice and God has made his choice. By his bruises we are healed. Amen.
When you hear about a murder in the newspaper, on the internet, on the radio or on TV, do you ever ask this question, “Why did that person choose to die?” No. Most of the time, nobody deliberately chooses to die. Especially at the hands of somebody else. Ernest Becker explains in his book, “The Denial of Death” that even those heroes who choose to fight in wars by jumping out of boats and running out into the line of fire can only do so because they feel pity for the person running next to them because they are worried that the other person might get hit by a stray bullet. If we could possibly be aware enough to truly consider our own death, no one would ever get out of the boat. No one would ever step out of their house. But when Jesus dies on the cross, there is a need within all of us to ask this question,:”Why did Jesus choose to die?”
We are driven to ask this question only when we realize somewhere within us that Jesus is more than just one of us, he is God himself. And for God himself to be on that cross, the creator of heaven and earth, well, there must be more to it than a simple homicide that you’d hear about on the news. Unfortunately, this also betrays something even more interesting about both that little girl at my table, and about all of us in fact: she is already trying to wiggle out of her responsibility regarding the cross, just like the rest of us sinners. “Why did Jesus choose to die?” it’s a question we sinners like to ask, because if we can explain to ourselves and to each other why God wanted to die then it gets us off the hook. Then we can sing the hymn, “Were you there when they crucified my lord,” and smirk to ourselves that “no, we weren’t there.” We can place the blame of Jesus’ death on someone else.
Our reading this evening from the book of Isaiah references this way of thinking, “Surely he has borne our infirmities and carried our diseases; yet we accounted him stricken, struck down by God, and afflicted. But he was wounded for OUR transgressions, crushed for OUR iniquities; upon him was the punishment that made us whole, and by his bruises we are healed.” We like to put the blame on God for Jesus’ death. The gospels tell us that Jesus knows he is heading for Jerusalem to suffer and die, so how can we be culpable? Why would it be our fault? Jesus must have chosen to die and we had nothing to do with it. We weren’t even there!
In fact, as Isaiah writes down a few verses later, “It was the will of the Lord to crush him with pain.” If God wanted his son Jesus to die, who was really going to stop him, not I. Yes indeed, none of us would have stopped the death of Jesus. We would have run away like the rest of the disciples, looked on from a distance, or deny Jesus in the heat of the moment.
“He was wounded for OUR transgressions, crushed for OUR iniquities.” Why did Jesus choose to die?” It wasn’t that Jesus chose to die as if he didn’t want to rather live, but Jesus had to die, it was necessary for him to die as scripture puts it, because you and I would have it no other way. He came to earth forgiving sins, casting out demons and healing the sick and so he was killed for it. Jesus didn’t whip himself to the point of death, hammer nails into his body and raise himself up on the cross—sinners like you and me did this to him. Perhaps the only good answer to the question, “Why did Jesus choose to die?” is this, “Because there was no other way to get through to you and me.” He had to choose to give us the choice to kill him, so that when he was resurrected from the dead, we would realize what we had done. So that we might realize the length and depth and breadth of our sin and then, finally, understand the full extent of what he had done on the cross.
Jesus chose to die for you, by being born on Earth and letting you kill him, so that you might realize that even though you are completely responsible for his death, just as much as any person alive 2000 years ago, Jesus has wiped your sins away in the blood of his cross. You made you choice to kill Jesus Christ and now he has made his choice to give you eternal life.
Ironically, as Jesus is dying, he says, “Father forgive them, for they know not what they do.” But the truth is, sinners back then and sinners today know exactly what we are doing, given the choice, sinners want Jesus dead. What we don’t know, is that by making our choice, God can finally make his choice once and for all in a way that we might all understand and believe. We cannot hide our sins any longer, Jesus’ blood is on our hands and on our children’s children. Thankfully, though, that same blood washes us clean in the sight of God. We have made our choice and God has made his choice. By his bruises we are healed. Amen.
Tuesday, March 24, 2009
Sermon for March 22nd
The gospel reading today is the end of a conversation. The end of a conversation between Jesus and a Pharisee named Nicodemus who came to ask Jesus some questions one night. Nicodemus came to Jesus and said, “Rabbi, we know that you are a teacher who has come from God; for no one can do these signs that you do apart from the very presence of God.” Jesus answered him, Very truly, I tell you, no one can see the kingdom of God without being born from above.” I hope that you are already getting a sense here that Nicodemus and Jesus are talking in two very different ways. Nicodemus is talking down here somewhere and Jesus answers him on an entirely different plane, going right over his head.
But Nidodemus tries to get the conversation back onto an understandable track by saying, “How can anyone be born after having grown old? Can one enter a second time into the mother’s womb and be born?” Jesus answers, “Very truly, I tell you, no one can enter the kingdom of God without being born of water and Spirit. What is born of the flesh is flesh and what is born of the Spirit is spirit.” Once again, Jesus’ answers are anything but easy. Christians throughout the ages have spent many a ream of paper trying to decipher what exactly Jesus meant and so, you can imagine, how Nicodemus felt hearing it for the first time.
Nicodemus finally throws up his hands and says, “How can these things be?” Jesus answers, “Are you a teacher of Israel and yet you do not understand these things? If I have told you about earthly things and you do not believe, how can you believe if I tell you about heavenly things?” That’s the spot where our reading comes in today.
Now, why is this important? Because the first part of the conversation sets the stage for the second. Here is Nicodemus, a well-educated member of the elite class of theologians in Judaism and he is lost when it comes to understanding what Jesus is saying. Nicodemus is coming to Jesus for answers, maybe for a little homework to understand what he’s all about, but Jesus frustrates all these attempts and keeps talking about faith, trust and belief. It is clear that Nicodemus does not believe and THAT, much more than his lack of understanding, is the problem.
What does Nicodemus need to do? What does Nicodemus need to understand? What does Nicodemus have to believe in order to get on Jesus’ good side? These are the same questions that we are all driven to ask of ourselves. Nicodemus represents all of us and our attempts at belief. Even if we try to jump through all the hoops it is as difficult as a camel jumping through the eye of a needle, as Jesus puts it. No matter how smart we are, how diligent we are or how faithful we are Jesus puts it quite simply, “No one has ascended into heaven except the one who descended from heaven, the Son of Man.” If you are confused about what to believe or who to believe or how to believe join the club that Nicodemus started that day in a conversation with Jesus. And, welcome to the human race. We are all lost.
But after listing how impossible it will be for Nicodemus, or any of us, to take heaven by storm, Jesus gives you a glimpse of your hope. “For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, so that everyone who believes in him may not perish but may have eternal life.” To our ears this sounds so easy. Love. You can still hear Rodney King crying out, “Can’t we al just get along?” It should be so easy, but it’s not. When I hear talk about the world on NPR or in conversations with people, the world is a beautiful place worth saving. But the world, as the word is used in the gospel of John, is a place for of sin and death. It’s not a pretty place. It’s not a place that is easy to love. For God to love the world is a dramatic and radical step. So radical, that God’s only Son, Jesus has to DIE to save it.
If we simply start at John 3:16 and skip the first part of this conversation we miss the point. Jesus doesn’t just save a nice little pretty world of duckies and bunnies. He saved a world of sinners. He had to come because we were unable to be saved without him. We didn’t understand him. We couldn’t believe.
Verse 17, “Indeed, God did not send the Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him.” The Greek word for what is translated condemn is krino and it refers to a judgment, a final conclusion about something, especially a negative decision. But the text says that Jesus was NOT sent to judge the world or sent so that God could make his final conclusion on mankind. By the time Jesus was born, the conclusion had already been made.
Verse 18, “Those who believe in him are not condemned, but those who do not believe are condemned already,(they are condemned already) because they have not believed in the name of the only Son of God.” Jesus came to earth not to judge you or to express an opinion about you, but to save you. God’s judgment of you has already been made as far back as Genesis, “The Lord saw that the wickedness of humankind was great in the earth and that every inclination of the thoughts of their hearts was only evil continually.” God’s judgment on humankind is clear, “Guilty.”
When God made that statement about the world in Genesis six, he decided to blot out every living thing from the Earth except for Noah and his family by means of a flood but, afterwards, God promised never to flood the earth again. So now, to deal with our guilt, God is doing something new in Jesus. Not killing the world because of the judgment against it, but saving it. The world isn’t in MORE trouble because Jesus died on the cross; the judgment has already been made. Jesus came to save.
Judgment Day, that event everyone is always worried about, shouldn’t really be that much of a mystery. That day will be great and terrible as the Bible tells us over and over again because we already know the judgment. We already know we are guilty. The Israelites rebelled against God and we still rebel against God. On the last day, God will tell you that judgment once again. You are rebellious. You are a sinner. As great and terrible as it is it is nothing you don’t know already. And, just like Nicodemus, nothing you can do will change this.
In other words, nothing new happened when we killed Jesus on the cross. Lots of people died before Jesus and lots of people died after Jesus. Death isn’t new. It is expected. We hear this expressed again and again in the gospels where Jesus knows he is heading for death, that he will suffer and die at our hands. The new thing, is what happens after we hide in the dark from his light. Jesus, the light of the world, finds us. Whether it is in the upper room where the disciples are hiding behind closed doors from the Jews or when Jesus finds Peter on a fishing boat. Jesus’ death is old, what happens after his death, however, is quite new. He is raised from the dead and comes after his betrayers. Not for vengeance like in some horror movie; instead, Jesus does something extraordinary. He forgives. He saves. Not only his disciples but all who believe in him.
The first part of Jesus’ conversation with Nicodemus is old. It’s about the law and how impossible it is for us to follow God’s demands. But the second art, from today’s reading, well, that is a promise: what God is going to do for you because he loves you.
The world is condemned already, Jesus comes to save it. Apart from Jesus there is only judgment and, since we can’t meet God’s demands, condemnation. But NOT believing in Jesus doesn’t CAUSE condemnation, do you see that? Sometimes you’ll hear people talk about belief in Jesus as a choice that if it is not made right now means you are suddenly condemned. But we are all condemned already. We have caused our condemnation based on our own sins. We are all condemned when Jesus shows up on the scene. We are all in the same boat that is capsizing, only jumping out of that boat and into the arms of Jesus can give us salvation.
You’re no worse off than you were before if you don’t believe in Jesus Christ. You’re JUST as worse off as you have always been. Living in an old world of sin and death with no hope. But Jesus is new. He comes into your system of sin, death, and judgment, breaking it all to pieces. He doesn’t put on extra demands that were not there before, but says, “Believe in me and everything is done already.” That’s why it always seems like Jesus’ words are gong over our heads just like Nicodemus. We want to understand the right way to pray, or to talk, or what the correct church is to go to, but the only reason any of that is important is because we want the old things of this world to focus our attention to the only new thing that can truly save us, “Trusting in Jesus Christ alone.”
During this Lenten season, it’s time to look not at this old world, but at the new promise you have in Jesus Christ, the promise that we will celebrate on Easter. That Jesus has not come to condemn you, but to save you from the condemnation you already experience on a daily basis. “For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, so that everyone who believes in him may not perish but may have eternal life.”
But Nidodemus tries to get the conversation back onto an understandable track by saying, “How can anyone be born after having grown old? Can one enter a second time into the mother’s womb and be born?” Jesus answers, “Very truly, I tell you, no one can enter the kingdom of God without being born of water and Spirit. What is born of the flesh is flesh and what is born of the Spirit is spirit.” Once again, Jesus’ answers are anything but easy. Christians throughout the ages have spent many a ream of paper trying to decipher what exactly Jesus meant and so, you can imagine, how Nicodemus felt hearing it for the first time.
Nicodemus finally throws up his hands and says, “How can these things be?” Jesus answers, “Are you a teacher of Israel and yet you do not understand these things? If I have told you about earthly things and you do not believe, how can you believe if I tell you about heavenly things?” That’s the spot where our reading comes in today.
Now, why is this important? Because the first part of the conversation sets the stage for the second. Here is Nicodemus, a well-educated member of the elite class of theologians in Judaism and he is lost when it comes to understanding what Jesus is saying. Nicodemus is coming to Jesus for answers, maybe for a little homework to understand what he’s all about, but Jesus frustrates all these attempts and keeps talking about faith, trust and belief. It is clear that Nicodemus does not believe and THAT, much more than his lack of understanding, is the problem.
What does Nicodemus need to do? What does Nicodemus need to understand? What does Nicodemus have to believe in order to get on Jesus’ good side? These are the same questions that we are all driven to ask of ourselves. Nicodemus represents all of us and our attempts at belief. Even if we try to jump through all the hoops it is as difficult as a camel jumping through the eye of a needle, as Jesus puts it. No matter how smart we are, how diligent we are or how faithful we are Jesus puts it quite simply, “No one has ascended into heaven except the one who descended from heaven, the Son of Man.” If you are confused about what to believe or who to believe or how to believe join the club that Nicodemus started that day in a conversation with Jesus. And, welcome to the human race. We are all lost.
But after listing how impossible it will be for Nicodemus, or any of us, to take heaven by storm, Jesus gives you a glimpse of your hope. “For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, so that everyone who believes in him may not perish but may have eternal life.” To our ears this sounds so easy. Love. You can still hear Rodney King crying out, “Can’t we al just get along?” It should be so easy, but it’s not. When I hear talk about the world on NPR or in conversations with people, the world is a beautiful place worth saving. But the world, as the word is used in the gospel of John, is a place for of sin and death. It’s not a pretty place. It’s not a place that is easy to love. For God to love the world is a dramatic and radical step. So radical, that God’s only Son, Jesus has to DIE to save it.
If we simply start at John 3:16 and skip the first part of this conversation we miss the point. Jesus doesn’t just save a nice little pretty world of duckies and bunnies. He saved a world of sinners. He had to come because we were unable to be saved without him. We didn’t understand him. We couldn’t believe.
Verse 17, “Indeed, God did not send the Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him.” The Greek word for what is translated condemn is krino and it refers to a judgment, a final conclusion about something, especially a negative decision. But the text says that Jesus was NOT sent to judge the world or sent so that God could make his final conclusion on mankind. By the time Jesus was born, the conclusion had already been made.
Verse 18, “Those who believe in him are not condemned, but those who do not believe are condemned already,(they are condemned already) because they have not believed in the name of the only Son of God.” Jesus came to earth not to judge you or to express an opinion about you, but to save you. God’s judgment of you has already been made as far back as Genesis, “The Lord saw that the wickedness of humankind was great in the earth and that every inclination of the thoughts of their hearts was only evil continually.” God’s judgment on humankind is clear, “Guilty.”
When God made that statement about the world in Genesis six, he decided to blot out every living thing from the Earth except for Noah and his family by means of a flood but, afterwards, God promised never to flood the earth again. So now, to deal with our guilt, God is doing something new in Jesus. Not killing the world because of the judgment against it, but saving it. The world isn’t in MORE trouble because Jesus died on the cross; the judgment has already been made. Jesus came to save.
Judgment Day, that event everyone is always worried about, shouldn’t really be that much of a mystery. That day will be great and terrible as the Bible tells us over and over again because we already know the judgment. We already know we are guilty. The Israelites rebelled against God and we still rebel against God. On the last day, God will tell you that judgment once again. You are rebellious. You are a sinner. As great and terrible as it is it is nothing you don’t know already. And, just like Nicodemus, nothing you can do will change this.
In other words, nothing new happened when we killed Jesus on the cross. Lots of people died before Jesus and lots of people died after Jesus. Death isn’t new. It is expected. We hear this expressed again and again in the gospels where Jesus knows he is heading for death, that he will suffer and die at our hands. The new thing, is what happens after we hide in the dark from his light. Jesus, the light of the world, finds us. Whether it is in the upper room where the disciples are hiding behind closed doors from the Jews or when Jesus finds Peter on a fishing boat. Jesus’ death is old, what happens after his death, however, is quite new. He is raised from the dead and comes after his betrayers. Not for vengeance like in some horror movie; instead, Jesus does something extraordinary. He forgives. He saves. Not only his disciples but all who believe in him.
The first part of Jesus’ conversation with Nicodemus is old. It’s about the law and how impossible it is for us to follow God’s demands. But the second art, from today’s reading, well, that is a promise: what God is going to do for you because he loves you.
The world is condemned already, Jesus comes to save it. Apart from Jesus there is only judgment and, since we can’t meet God’s demands, condemnation. But NOT believing in Jesus doesn’t CAUSE condemnation, do you see that? Sometimes you’ll hear people talk about belief in Jesus as a choice that if it is not made right now means you are suddenly condemned. But we are all condemned already. We have caused our condemnation based on our own sins. We are all condemned when Jesus shows up on the scene. We are all in the same boat that is capsizing, only jumping out of that boat and into the arms of Jesus can give us salvation.
You’re no worse off than you were before if you don’t believe in Jesus Christ. You’re JUST as worse off as you have always been. Living in an old world of sin and death with no hope. But Jesus is new. He comes into your system of sin, death, and judgment, breaking it all to pieces. He doesn’t put on extra demands that were not there before, but says, “Believe in me and everything is done already.” That’s why it always seems like Jesus’ words are gong over our heads just like Nicodemus. We want to understand the right way to pray, or to talk, or what the correct church is to go to, but the only reason any of that is important is because we want the old things of this world to focus our attention to the only new thing that can truly save us, “Trusting in Jesus Christ alone.”
During this Lenten season, it’s time to look not at this old world, but at the new promise you have in Jesus Christ, the promise that we will celebrate on Easter. That Jesus has not come to condemn you, but to save you from the condemnation you already experience on a daily basis. “For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, so that everyone who believes in him may not perish but may have eternal life.”
Sunday, April 20, 2008
Sermon for April 20th
Is God angry with you? Yes. So what are you going to do about it? You are probably going to do the same thing that every human being has done throughout the centuries when they believed that God was angry with them . . . you will try to make God happy with you. But how do you do this? How does one make God happy? How can you satisfy an angry God?
It seems like a rather difficult proposition. How do you make God happy if he is angry? Well, if you don’t know, then perhaps you could try to find someone who does know. Perhaps the local religious person. Every culture has a medicine man or a priest-like figure. These people are supposed to have a gift, or training, or some kind of special powers that enable them to satisfy the demands of an angry God or spirit.
In some African Traditional Religions, there is a priest that is called a medicine man. This person is called upon to sacrifice to the gods on behalf of the people. He or she tells you what you need to do or what you need to sacrifice to stay on your god’s good side on a day to day basis. For instance, in some places, it is important to pour out a libation to the gods or to your ancestors before you eat or drink. What does this mean? It means that, before you down your glass of wine, you dump some of it out onto the ground with the understanding that this is the gods’ portion so that they don’t get angry with you. Sacrifices are always made with the understanding that a god or some kind of spirit is unhappy with you and needs a sacrifice to satisfy their anger.
In the Old Testament, when you made a mistake or sinned against someone or against God, you went to the priest to find out what you had to do to make it right. For instance, if you just made a little boo boo, maybe you gave the priest some grain to burn up. If you killed somebody by mistake, perhaps you had to sacrifice a lamb to make up for it. Of course, if you killed somebody on purpose, the priest might have to sacrifice you in order for God not to be mad at the entire community. When a sin was committed, a payment was demanded. You went to a priest to find out what you had to do in order to make God happy. Only the priest knew how to satisfy God the correct way. Only a priest had the authority to proclaim the mysteries of God.
Nowadays, we find this kind of thinking really uncivilized. Why should lambs and cattle and bread be burned up to satisfy God? At best it seems silly and at worst it looks like a legal case for the humane society.
The thing is, many of us still wonder if God is angry with us. Perhaps you have considered your sins and are sure that God should be angry with you. And unlike your uncivilized predecessors, you don’t have a clue as to what you could do to satisfy God. So, you might end up in the same place they did, trying to find yourself some kind of priest and start looking for something to sacrifice.
I believe that this is exactly what we do today. Sacrifice doesn’t always involve dead lambs and burning things up. It can take many forms and disguises. For instance, many people who couldn’t imagine seeing a priest have their own personal guru. This guru helps them to get past their cravings, or learn to be at peace, or to be more wholly attuned into nature. If you’ve ever had a guru, you may have never thought about whether God was angry with you or not. But you were angry and needed to be satisfied. You were angry at all the meaninglessness in your life and you wanted to find a way to satisfy your need for happiness and fulfillment. So you gave up meat, or your need for noise, or you sacrificed your play time in order to serve others in the community. Why? Because that’s what your guru told you to do. To satisfy an angry god . . . to satisfy you.
Is God angry with you? Yes. What are you going to do about it? Try to sacrifice something to make Him happy again. But that not what God wants from you. That’s not going to work. That’s not going to satisfy an angry God. God doesn’t want a little dead lamb. He wants you and nothing else will suffice. He wants your full and complete repentance. He wants you to have a new heart. He wants you have a new spirit. He wants you to love him. He wants you to love your neighbor. He wants justice to roll down like waters and righteousness like an everflowing stream! Is God angry with you? Yes. What can you do about it? Absolutely nothing.
Thankfully, since you are unwilling and unable to satisfy God, God has done something about it. God has sent Jesus Christ to earth to tell you: Your sins are forgiven. God is not angry with you anymore. Jesus Christ has satisfied his wrath. How? By finding you. By forgiving you. By giving you faith so that you might love truly, from the heart. God is only satisfied when you believe in him and start loving your neighbor. So Jesus satisfies God’s anger by giving you a new heart and a new spirit so that you can actually do it. He gives you faith to believe in God and out of this living faith comes love, just like fruit blossoming off of a fruit tree. You can’t help it, it just happens.
Jesus has satisfied God’s wrath. He has put all the priests and gurus and medicine men of the world out of a job. But God has also done something else wonderful. He has made you a priest in their place.
He has made you a priest. But the job description has been completely rewritten. Your job, as a priest, is not to make sacrifices to make God happy. When the three women went to the tomb of Jesus to prepare his corpse, to keep it from stinking too badly, they were fulfilling the laws and customs of their time. They were sacrificing their time to fulfill their duty before God and the community. But when they found out that Jesus was alive they ran to tell their friends. They became priests. Right then and there. Priests used to say what needed to happen in order for you to satisfy an angry God. Now priests say what Jesus has done to satisfy God for you.
Why did these women tell their friends? Was it because the angel had made them feel guilty. Did they have to tell the disciples? Would they get in trouble if they didn’t? No. Jesus was alive! They didn’t have to be scared anymore of an angry God. The whole sacrificial system was over for them at that instant. Now, they could let everyone else know.
In today’s reading from 1st Peter, you can hear your function as a Christian priest. “But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, God’s own people, in order that you may proclaim the mighty acts of him who called you out of darkness into his marvelous light.” You now know God as a loving God, as long as you keep your eyes on Jesus Christ. The sacrificial system is over for you. As God’s priest you now have the right and the authority to let everyone else know about it.
It seems like a rather difficult proposition. How do you make God happy if he is angry? Well, if you don’t know, then perhaps you could try to find someone who does know. Perhaps the local religious person. Every culture has a medicine man or a priest-like figure. These people are supposed to have a gift, or training, or some kind of special powers that enable them to satisfy the demands of an angry God or spirit.
In some African Traditional Religions, there is a priest that is called a medicine man. This person is called upon to sacrifice to the gods on behalf of the people. He or she tells you what you need to do or what you need to sacrifice to stay on your god’s good side on a day to day basis. For instance, in some places, it is important to pour out a libation to the gods or to your ancestors before you eat or drink. What does this mean? It means that, before you down your glass of wine, you dump some of it out onto the ground with the understanding that this is the gods’ portion so that they don’t get angry with you. Sacrifices are always made with the understanding that a god or some kind of spirit is unhappy with you and needs a sacrifice to satisfy their anger.
In the Old Testament, when you made a mistake or sinned against someone or against God, you went to the priest to find out what you had to do to make it right. For instance, if you just made a little boo boo, maybe you gave the priest some grain to burn up. If you killed somebody by mistake, perhaps you had to sacrifice a lamb to make up for it. Of course, if you killed somebody on purpose, the priest might have to sacrifice you in order for God not to be mad at the entire community. When a sin was committed, a payment was demanded. You went to a priest to find out what you had to do in order to make God happy. Only the priest knew how to satisfy God the correct way. Only a priest had the authority to proclaim the mysteries of God.
Nowadays, we find this kind of thinking really uncivilized. Why should lambs and cattle and bread be burned up to satisfy God? At best it seems silly and at worst it looks like a legal case for the humane society.
The thing is, many of us still wonder if God is angry with us. Perhaps you have considered your sins and are sure that God should be angry with you. And unlike your uncivilized predecessors, you don’t have a clue as to what you could do to satisfy God. So, you might end up in the same place they did, trying to find yourself some kind of priest and start looking for something to sacrifice.
I believe that this is exactly what we do today. Sacrifice doesn’t always involve dead lambs and burning things up. It can take many forms and disguises. For instance, many people who couldn’t imagine seeing a priest have their own personal guru. This guru helps them to get past their cravings, or learn to be at peace, or to be more wholly attuned into nature. If you’ve ever had a guru, you may have never thought about whether God was angry with you or not. But you were angry and needed to be satisfied. You were angry at all the meaninglessness in your life and you wanted to find a way to satisfy your need for happiness and fulfillment. So you gave up meat, or your need for noise, or you sacrificed your play time in order to serve others in the community. Why? Because that’s what your guru told you to do. To satisfy an angry god . . . to satisfy you.
Is God angry with you? Yes. What are you going to do about it? Try to sacrifice something to make Him happy again. But that not what God wants from you. That’s not going to work. That’s not going to satisfy an angry God. God doesn’t want a little dead lamb. He wants you and nothing else will suffice. He wants your full and complete repentance. He wants you to have a new heart. He wants you have a new spirit. He wants you to love him. He wants you to love your neighbor. He wants justice to roll down like waters and righteousness like an everflowing stream! Is God angry with you? Yes. What can you do about it? Absolutely nothing.
Thankfully, since you are unwilling and unable to satisfy God, God has done something about it. God has sent Jesus Christ to earth to tell you: Your sins are forgiven. God is not angry with you anymore. Jesus Christ has satisfied his wrath. How? By finding you. By forgiving you. By giving you faith so that you might love truly, from the heart. God is only satisfied when you believe in him and start loving your neighbor. So Jesus satisfies God’s anger by giving you a new heart and a new spirit so that you can actually do it. He gives you faith to believe in God and out of this living faith comes love, just like fruit blossoming off of a fruit tree. You can’t help it, it just happens.
Jesus has satisfied God’s wrath. He has put all the priests and gurus and medicine men of the world out of a job. But God has also done something else wonderful. He has made you a priest in their place.
He has made you a priest. But the job description has been completely rewritten. Your job, as a priest, is not to make sacrifices to make God happy. When the three women went to the tomb of Jesus to prepare his corpse, to keep it from stinking too badly, they were fulfilling the laws and customs of their time. They were sacrificing their time to fulfill their duty before God and the community. But when they found out that Jesus was alive they ran to tell their friends. They became priests. Right then and there. Priests used to say what needed to happen in order for you to satisfy an angry God. Now priests say what Jesus has done to satisfy God for you.
Why did these women tell their friends? Was it because the angel had made them feel guilty. Did they have to tell the disciples? Would they get in trouble if they didn’t? No. Jesus was alive! They didn’t have to be scared anymore of an angry God. The whole sacrificial system was over for them at that instant. Now, they could let everyone else know.
In today’s reading from 1st Peter, you can hear your function as a Christian priest. “But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, God’s own people, in order that you may proclaim the mighty acts of him who called you out of darkness into his marvelous light.” You now know God as a loving God, as long as you keep your eyes on Jesus Christ. The sacrificial system is over for you. As God’s priest you now have the right and the authority to let everyone else know about it.
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