The Power of Peace

a litany

I am deeply connected with all of humanity, and with every person in particular.

So long as anyone remains unloved, I am lonely.
So long as anyone remains hungry, I am not satisfied.
So long as anyone remains in need, I am poor.
So long as anyone remains imprisoned, I am not free.
So long as anyone remains in danger, I am not safe.
So long as anyone suffers from illness, I am not well.

But when my heart aches for the unloved, Christ is with me.
And whoever spends themselves on behalf of the hungry, Christ is with them.
And for those who dare to see the needs of others, Christ is their light.
And for the prisoner, Christ is the open door.
And for the fearless warrior for peace, Christ is the shield.
And to those who attend to the wounds and sickness of this world,
Christ, the Great Physician, lends his skill, his care and compassion.

Bob Buehler, December 2006

Our text today: Revelation 21:1-6

(These notes are abbreviated, and the full sermon was rather more complete. Watch this space for the time we can begin podcasting the sermon itself.)

21:1 Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth; for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away, and the sea was no more.
21:2 And I saw the holy city, the new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband.
21:3 And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, “See, the home of God is among mortals. He will dwell with them as their God; they will be his peoples, and God himself will be with them;
21:4 he will wipe every tear from their eyes. Death will be no more; mourning and crying and pain will be no more, for the first things have passed away.”
21:5 And the one who was seated on the throne said, “See, I am making all things new.” Also he said, “Write this, for these words are trustworthy and true.”
21:6 Then he said to me, “It is done! I am the Alpha and the Omega, the beginning and the end. To the thirsty I will give water as a gift from the spring of the water of life.

Today we’re going to talk about the hope that God has placed in us. I’m sure each of us has an idea, or an image, in our minds that comes up whenever we think of Heaven, of the dwellingplace of God, of the promise given to believers for eternal life. It’s appropriate for us to make sure that we are fit for heaven. We spend our lives, in a way, doing that. Those of us who work for justice, peace, healing, and equality do so, when we’re at our best, as ones who are mindful that Jesus taught us to pray for God’s kingdom to come, for God’ will to be done on earth as it is in heaven. Ah, but that brings up the question: How is God’s will done in heaven? That becomes relevant for us if we are to even pray properly, and also if we are to recognize when our prayers have been answered.

The first thing we see in our passage is that heaven, and indeed when God is done with it, earth, is something new. There are those who look for God to come and set up an earthly kingdom of some kind, modeled after the kingdoms of this world. Peter says in his second epistle, We look for a new heaven and a new earth, in which righteousness dwells.

The second thing we see is that the church of God, designated here as the new Jerusalem, the bride of Christ, is in heaven already, and is not going to heaven. You went to heaven, in a certain way, the day you became a Christian and thus became a member of this Bride, this Body, this holy temple. In John’s vision the church is holy and complete, already belonging to God, every stone and precious pearl in place.

The third thing we see is that God does not bring the people of earth up to heaven, but brings heaven down to us. Where God is, is healing from sorrow and pain.

The fourth thing is, that God makes all things new. He doesn’t just renew what is old, bad, sinful, or wrong; he renews everything.

The fifth thing is, that God gives life freely as a gift to all who thirst for it.

Sermon notes for April 29, 2007 at the Marbury Church of God.

John 10:22-30
10:22 At that time the festival of the Dedication took place in Jerusalem. It was winter,
10:23 and Jesus was walking in the temple, in the portico of Solomon.
10:24 So the Jews gathered around him and said to him, “How long will you keep us in suspense? If you are the Messiah, tell us plainly.”
10:25 Jesus answered, “I have told you, and you do not believe. The works that I do in my Father’s name testify to me;
10:26 but you do not believe, because you do not belong to my sheep.
10:27 My sheep hear my voice. I know them, and they follow me.
10:28 I give them eternal life, and they will never perish. No one will snatch them out of my hand.
10:29 What my Father has given me is greater than all else, and no one can snatch it out of the Father’s hand.
10:30 The Father and I are one.”

Psalm 23
23:1 The LORD is my shepherd, I shall not want.
23:2 He makes me lie down in green pastures; he leads me beside still waters;
23:3 he restores my soul. He leads me in right paths for his name’s sake.
23:4 Even though I walk through the darkest valley, I fear no evil; for you are with me; your rod and your staff– they comfort me.
23:5 You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies; you anoint my head with oil; my cup overflows.
23:6 Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life, and I shall dwell in the house of the LORD my whole life long.

The source of the church’s provision is Jesus Christ, the Good Shepherd. The church is unlike any other organization in the world, in that it lives under supernatural protection and guidance.

In our passage in John 10:30, specifically when speaking of his role as shepherd, Jesus identifies himself with God the Father in the strongest possible terms. His questioners, the Jews (actually the leaders: Pharisees, teachers of the law, chief priests and elders) have challenged him to say plainly whether he is the Messiah. His difficulty is a simple one, though. He is the Messiah, but he is not the kind of Messiah they are looking for: they want a nationalistic leader who will unite their people politically, organize them militarily, resolve their disputes judicially, enforce right behavior autocratically, purify the occupancy of the land ethnically, and restore the kingdom of Israel to the prominent place it had under David and Solomon as the wonder of the world.

But none of those things are on his agenda. Today we still have those who look for a messiah to do all of those things, and are in danger of failing to see that God does not provide the followers of Jesus a role greater than or different from what we saw in him the first time.

If Jesus simply were to announce “yes, I am the Messiah,” without radically redefining for their understanding what the Messiah is and what the Messiah’s purpose is to be, they would remain deceived and would expect many things of him which he had no intention to deliver. He has already refused a popular call to take him by force and make him king. So he has used other words to describe himself and the way in which he has received God’s anointing as David’s heir: he is the light of the world, the good shepherd, the bread of life, the source of living water.

Some things about the way the shepherd provides for his sheep:

First, he provides a calling: My sheep hear my voice. Not just a calling but a response: they follow. And here’s an important point: I know them, he says. Jesus knows his sheep. He can tell when one is missing or gone astray. We know from the parable of the lost sheep that he will go to extraordinary lengths to get one stray back into the fold. We could spend quite a bit of time talking about his care for the individual sheep, and how precious and important each one is to Jesus, but here I want to notice something that almost could go unnoticed, because it almost goes without saying: the sheep belong in a flock, they are called together, they follow together. The individual, personal relationship each of us as sheep has with Jesus does not eliminate our need to move together, under his calling, with others who are called; indeed, it intensifies it.

Next he provides a gift better than all other gifts: I give them eternal life. Eternal life is, in John’s gospel, a shorthand for all that Jesus gives. John uses it the way the other evangelists use “Kingdom of Heaven” or “Kingdom of God.” This is contrasted with the kingdoms of this world, which was offered to Jesus by the Devil in his temptation.

Looking through Psalm 23, we can see some more about God’s provision for his people: I shall not want = I have everything I need. Whether it be our daily bread, strength for the day, or the spiritual riches we are talking about, those who respond in obedience to Jesus will lack nothing. Next is a picture of shalom: green pastures, still waters; peace and plenty without strife.

He restores my soul. Like the prodigal, the one who hears the voice of of the Good shepherd “comes to himself.” How easy it is to forget who we are! We know who we are when we know whose we are and act accordingly. Look at what James says (James 1:23-25): Anyone who listens to the word but does not do what it says is like a man who looks at his face in a mirror and, after looking at himself, goes away and immediately forgets what he looks like. But the man who looks intently into the perfect law that gives freedom, and continues to do this, not forgetting what he has heard, but doing it” he will be blessed in what he does. It is important to remember ourselves, which we do by hearing and heeding his voice. Then he truly leads us in right paths for his name’s sake. All of this is true not just for us as individuals but for the church as church. If we let ourselves be just another gathering of people with no purpose and no power, listening to our own anxious voices and the voices that clamor around us, without focusing constantly on the word of God and especially the voice of Jesus, we will easily lose our way; but if remember that this church is God’s church, that Christ himself is our chief pastor, and that when he leads us into a new place it is going to be a place of blessing and peace, we’ll not be like that fellow who forgets what he looks like; we’ll move forward with confidence.

But what if we follow him as he leads and instead of seeing ourselves in a place of peace and contentment, it looks like the path is a dangerous one? What if it looks like doing what he says could spell death for the church as we know it? The psalmist keys in on this possibility, that the path on which he leads us may look deadly: Even though I walk through the darkest valley, I fear no evil; for you are with me; Isn’t that the key? When we follow him, his presence stays close with us. His correction and direction become sources of comfort; we can feast in the place where our circumstances say we should fear: You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies. So we become victors in all things. Our Shepherd will supply our needs.