April 19, 2009 Sermon
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Easter 2 - B 2009
John 20:19-31 April 19, 2009
Allan Conkling Emmanuel, San Angelo
Today's reading from the 1st Letter of John is perhaps better known to Episcopalians for its verse read every Sunday at the Rite I service:
"If
any man sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous;
and he is the perfect offering for our sins, and not for ours only, but for the
sins of the whole world."
(1
One of four Bible passages known in the old prayer book as "the comfortable words," it follows the Absolution and is an assurance of God’s forgiveness and grace to those who have confessed of their sins and seek to "walk in newness of life." Read here in its context these comfortable words were also, from the earliest days an invitation to go from the darkness of unbelief and follow Christ as light of the world.
The message of Easter, heard again and again, is that nothing in this life can separate us from God--nothing, that is except our selves. But even in those times when we are our own worst enemy, still "we have an advocate with the Father."
When we explore its meaning, we begin to see just how radical the resurrection really was. But here I refer not to the "miracle" of the empty tomb, as incredible as that event was. People will forever argue over how Jesus was raised; as you have heard me say before, that is less of an issue. What I get hung up on is not the "HOW" but instead the "WHY": WHY would God care for us that much? And more importantly, WHAT will this mean for my life, for the life of my family, for this church, for our nation if I choose to follow? Viewed in this way the resurrection is not just an event in the distant past, rather it is a present reality, within each of us now.
The Gospel (John 20:19-31) is called the story of Doubting Thomas, but in fact it is a story of a Loving God; a persistent God; a God, who was willing to do anything possible...and even impossible!...to get the attention of the Created. This is beyond comprehension. The risen Lord came once, and then came again for Thomas. He said,
"Thomas, put you finger here...reach out our hand and put it in my side."
No, we can't do that literally today, but by the power of the Spirit we can touch and receive the Body of Christ and be changed. No less than in those early days,
"We have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous,"
What Good news that is for those who are searching, for those dwell in the darkness of separation and illness, or are searching for the meaning of life. No one stands outside the embrace of God. No one. God's unconditional love for the Created goes beyond every human barrier. It challenges each one of us, in our own way to proclaim this message to the world:
"With great power the apostles gave their testimony to the resurrection of the Lord Jesus, and great grace was upon them all.” (Acts 4:33)
One commentary I read put it this way:
“So the call of Christ to me is an eternal call to love, to live, and to be. It is an invitation to work for those things that create life and to oppose those people, those attitudes, and those systems that distort life. It is to become aware of the freeing, exhilarating, consciousness-raising experience of the Holy God."
Jesus found the disciples huddled in that upper room on Easter eve; dark, fearful, closed in, locked away as in a tomb. But they didnt stay that way--for the light had come. Through believing they would have life in his name.
Almighty and everlasting God, who in the Paschal mystery established the new covenant of reconciliation: Grant that all who have been reborn into the fellowship of Christ’s Body may show forth in their lives what they profess by their faith; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one god, for ever and ever. Amen
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