Hebrews 11.1,29–40
The shortest sermon I ever heard may have been the most formative, so it's worth repeating. Ready?
"We!"
Like
many sermons, this one requires commentary. "I!" is not a sermon, and
it's not a particularly Christian word; in the eternal company of
Christ, there can only be "we." "Them" is also not a good sermon, and I
submit that it might be one of the most destructive words we use.
Rather, the shortest possible sermon is "we," and it is defined by
looking around us, for this specific "we" will never exist again.
Whether this group of individuals is ever gathered again is irrelevant,
for we will have been exposed to new experiences which will have changed
us; time changes who "we" is.
Moses changed his "we"
from Egyptian royalty to Israelite slaves. Joshua changed his "we" from
apprenticing under Moses to leading the Hebrew people. Rahab changed
her "we" from servicing the citizenry of Jericho to a member of the
nomadic Israelites (and consequently to a many-great grandmother of Jesus).
The writer of Hebrews then zips over the entire history of Israel, the
ever-changing "we" which defines how the writer views himself and his
audience, and it is full of outstanding successes and devastating
suffering. So it is with us, the "we" of the moment in which we find
ourselves. There are accomplishments to celebrate and pains to comfort;
some are open and known to all, and some are secret and held tightly
inside. Like the Israelites, we have not fully received the promise:
they the land of milk and honey, and we eternal life. There is no
peaceful land where the Israelites may stay and bask in God's
unadulterated goodness, and we suffer the pains and losses of human
life, knowing that death inevitably awaits us. Fortunately, like the
Israelites, we have the constant presence of a loving God in our
travels, in our celebrations and in our commiserations, and we have yet
another gift, the evidence of God's faithfulness to us in Christ, the
proleptic* promise of eternal life which is to come.
Jesus
defined "we" in an ever-present moment. His "we" included Pharisees,
prostitutes, and tax collectors; disciples and friends, family and
strangers; Samaritans and Gentiles and Jews (and even Romans!). Jesus
promised paradise to a crucified thief and healed a soldier who was
injured while taking him captive. He even asked the Creator to forgive
those who were crucifying him. At every turn, in every Gospel story,
Jesus is opening his arms to welcome a new member of his "WE."
We
get to choose what to care about, and because we are gathered together
here, I think I can safely say that we choose to care about our
relationship with God. God wants us to choose to care about things that
help those who are in our "we" right now, be they Christian, Muslim, or
atheist; immigrant, homeless, or next-door neighbor; parent, child, or
spouse; old family friend or complete stranger. God also wants us to
choose to care about things that honor those who have come before us;
here at Good Shepherd, you have the benefit of an archival wall of
photos to remind you of who you have been. God wants us to choose to
care about things which pave the way for those who will come after. Who
do you hope "we" will be? Who do you think Jesus would want "we" to
become?
Like the Israelites, there's a lot to keep in
mind as we think about where we have come from, who we choose to be now,
and who we hope to become. But we can take as our examples those who
have been counted faithful in scripture and in our own lives. With many
celebrations and commiserations, though they had not yet received the
fullness of the promise, they all had one thing in common: they moved
forward, taking action in faith, for faith is the assurance of things
hoped for, the conviction of things not yet seen.
*
Proleptic means "already, but not yet." It's one of my favourite
theological words about God's reign, and it's well worth knowing. God
has walked among us and surpassed death, but we still have to die in
this life before we can experience resurrection life.
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