March 9, 2003
Easter Is Coming
Back in my college days, my Alma mater Union
College put on the musical, God Spell. In the opening scene, John the
Baptist starts singing “Prepare Ye the Way of the Lord”
from the back of the audience, and then proceeded down the aisle to the
stage. Once he arrived there, the rest of the cast joined in, and soon
the whole orchestra was playing. What started out as a solemn and solo
pronouncement, ended by uniting the cast and the orchestra in joy.
We are now in Lent, and we come now to prepare for
the Way of the Lord. Individually we are called to put aside all
our selfish and self-defeated ways of acting and speaking, and unite
our hearts with the power of God, and with our brothers and sisters of
the world. This was the message of John the Baptist, to repent of our
sins and to reunite with our Creator. This was the message of Peter to
obey Jesus. This was the message of the John and Charles Wesley
Brothers, of being connected to God. The Wesleys organized the
Methodists as a way of disciplining followers to keep mindful of who
they were, and whose they were. John Wesley’s fear was that the
Methodist church would become an end in itself rather than the
instrument through which we share in God’s mission in the
world. He wrote in 1786, “I am
not afraid that the people called Methodists should ever cease to exist
either in Europe or America. But I am afraid, lest they should only
exist as a dead sect, having the form of religion without the power.
And this undoubtedly will be the case, unless they hold fast both the
doctrine, spirit, and discipline with which they first set out.”
What then can can we do to prepare ourselves
and our church so that we can remain loyal to the purpose of our lives
as set out by God? What can we do to prepare so we are loyal to the
purpose of the church in the Wesleyn tradition?
First, we can recognize that we are already
prepared by God. Wesley’s doctrine of “preventing” or
prevenient grace, states that apart from grace, a human being can do
nothing good, not even accept God’s gift. Further this grace is
given to all, and it works in all toward repentance and faith and
sanctification. It is only because of the this grace that there is any
progress. This grace enables us to distinguish right from wrong and
draws us to the right. This grace is with us from conception, it is not
externally given, it is internally present. As John Cobb states in his
book , Grace and Responsibility, “Human Beings do not first exist in
separation from God and then come into relation with God. Their very
life is already God’s presence within them. They exist by virtue
of their inclusion of the divine life within them.”
Baptism is a very concrete way of recognizing that
each one of us has been given the gift of grace -- that we are
God’s. Baptism reminds us too that we are not alone, that we are
born into community, and it is the community that helps us keep us
close to God, who helps us fight off temptations.
Now if you were listening carefully you might have
heard that everyone has this grace created within them. Wesley depicted
each human being as loved by God, enlivened by God, and enlightened by
God. Each is also called by God to grow in relationships both with God
and with other people. Each is empowered to do so. So we all have value
in God’s eyes, the Christian and the atheist, the Methodist and
the Catholic, the Native American and the Israeli.
However this is not always how the world sees
itself. There are those who feel they are superior to another. There
are some churches who promote themselves as being the only way to God.
There are some countries who feel they are the chosen race, and are
determined to convert the rest of the world. There are some religions
who try to convert even by force, by violence others.
The United Methodist Church stands in opposition to
these values not because it threatens the United Methodist Church, but
because it perverts the teachings of Jesus Christ. The temptation to
see others as less worthy of God’s love due to economic, or
political or nationalistic beliefs is contrary to the Gospel.
Jesus knew about Temptation of the world. He no
sooner proclaims a public ministry then he is taken out, immediately
the scripture says, to the desert. William Willimon feels there is a
connection between baptisms, Jesus’ call and temptation. It
scares him since he too feels called to ministry. “It’s
Marks peculiar touch, these wild beasts. Every time I read Mark’s
temptation tale, I can’t get my mind off those wild beasts. Is
not temptation like this -- some wild thing waiting to jump us? Back in
Genesis, Cain is warned that, if he does well, fine, but, “Take
care, sin is crouching at the door.” Sin is crouching outside the
door”.
We too may find wild beasts sitting outside our
doorsteps , they will tempt us to follow a different path than the one
Jesus calls us to. They will promise prosperity and immortality, they
will promise security, if we only follow them. The truth is that
apart from God we would be led down the path to our own destruction,
but the Good news is that God continues to work in us, through others,
to resist the temptations of the wild beasts of the world.
So how are we to live these days of preparation? I Peter
has some specific guidelines, but can be summed up with the slogan, “Don't get mad - get to work.” In verse 13, “Who
will harm you if you are eager to do what is good?” he asks. Christians may suffer as they
interface with others in the public square, but Peter's advice has
logic: If you're going to take some heat, take it for doing good, not
evil. Don't waste your energy on useless information or lost causes.
Get down. Get dirty. Get busy.
Elsewhere, the author has made a case for
proactive, cross-connected living. “As
servants of God, live as free people, yet do not use your freedom as a
pretext for evil. Honor everyone. Love the family of believers. Fear
God” (2:16-17). Closer to our
text, he suggests that we “be ready” to defend ourselves
when asked about having hope in a hopeless world (3:15). We are to keep
our conscience clear, he says (3:16). Christianity is not for the
passive-aggressive. God has not called us to be waiters, but
initiators.
Peter reminds the reader that they have been saved
through the waters of baptism just as Noah was saved through the waters
of the flood -- both by the grace of God. For Peter, baptism does not
simply wash away the dirt of sin, but rather leaves an indelible mark
upon the baptized. This mark identifies the believer as one who has
accepted the grace of God, who strives to resist the temptations of the
world, and one who serves others with love.
As I prepare to leave on Tuesday for the Pilgrimage
to Athens and Turkey with our Bishop and United Methodists from across
the country, I have reflected on what these scriptures have to tell me.
First, although there is risk involved, there is not anything worth
doing in life that has a certain amount of risk involved. Christians
for centuries have faced greater threats to their lives than the
probability of any harm coming to this trip. That doesn’t mean
that my anxiety is calmed by this statistic. But the chances of being
killed are greater each and every time I ride the freeway. And that
doesn’t keep me from going on them. Second, I have to give up
control. I have to trust in the company that has made the arrangements,
that what they say is trustworthy, we will be kept as safe as possible,
and arrangements will be made if things become dangerous. As Christians
we have to give up our own autonomy to the will of the Holy Spirit, not
always an easy task, but it is with the grace we find on the other side
of surrender that gives us freedom from the monsters of sin. Lastly, I
worry about those who worry about me, I try to find the words to calm
their fears, but it is not easy to find the right words, except that I
trust in God, and God will always watch over them, no matter what life
may bring. Easy words to say, harder to live out. But it is what we as
Christians strive to do, to let go of all the fears and the nightmares,
to let go of all that keeps us tied up with fear, all that pulls us
away from the path of discipleship.
I am not sure what the world will look like in the
weeks ahead, I do not know if we will be at war or at peace. I do
not know how I will be changed by this pilgrimage trip, whether I will
find a connection to Paul’s writings in a new and profound way or
not. I don’t know how you will be changed, whether you will have
suffer loss, or renewed joy. I do not know anything about the future
except that Easter is coming. There is nothing in the world that can
stop it. There is no evil doers, no political powers in this world that
can stop it. There is no religious guru who can stop it. Easter is
coming. Our world may be shaken, Easter is coming. Although
the future is clouded, Easter is coming. We may suffer, but Easter is
coming. The journey may be long and hard and we might lose our way, but
Easter is coming. The wild beasts might pounce, with promises of a
better way, ready to divert us away, but we have to hold on to our
faith that the path we follow leads us to Easter. Amen
