Freeville/Homer Avenue UMC's - Sixth Sunday of Easter - 05/01/16 Sermon - “Peace I leave with you. My peace I give."

Sunday 05/01/16 Freeville/Homer Avenue UMC’s

Sermon Title: “Peace I leave with you. My peace I give you.”

                            

New Testament Scripture: Psalm 67

                                            

New Testament Scripture: Acts 16:9-15

Gospel Lesson: John 14:23-29

          My brothers and sisters, my friends, welcome on this the Sixth Sunday of this season of Easter, where we continue to proclaim, He is risen! He is risen, indeed! We will remain in this season of Easter through next Sunday. Next Sunday, while being the Seventh Sunday of Easter, is also Mother’s Day, a day that we honor all women who take on the roles of motherhood. Next Sunday May 8^th, is also called Ascension Sunday, as the church this Thursday celebrates Jesus Christ ascending into heaven. As such, next Sunday we will also celebrate that.  

          The week after next Sunday, will be Sunday May 15^th, which is Pentecost Sunday. We are all encouraged to wear red on that day to celebrate the Holiday of Pentecost, where the Holy Spirit moved in and through the disciples.

          With this said, last Sunday, I talked about what Jesus meant when he told the disciples and us to love each other. I hypothesized from my own opinion that Jesus was calling his disciples and us to a deep and sacrificial level of love. A level of love that is giving, generous, and caring. A love that is deep and abiding.

          This morning though, I want to talk about the idea of peace. In many Christians Churches, there is a time during the service or after the service, when we are encouraged to greet each other. Sometimes we say “hello,” sometimes we say “God bless,” sometimes the kids say, “What up,” and often we might say, “Peace be with you”.

          This morning, Jesus says to the disciples and us, “Peace I leave with you. My peace I give you”. Similar to the way that I dissected what Jesus meant last Sunday when he said “Love each other,” I want to talk about what I think Jesus meant when he said, “Peace I leave with you. My peace I give you”.

          Well for some of us, some of the words in the Bible can be barriers to us understanding what God is trying communicating to us in the scriptures. For this reason, I wanted to define the world “peace”. So I went to www.merriam-webster.com and looked up the word peace. The online dictionary said:

1:  A state of tranquility or quiet: freedom from civil disturbance: a state of security or order within a community provided for by law or custom.

2:  Freedom from disquieting or oppressive thoughts or emotions.

3:  Harmony in personal relations.

4: A state or period of mutual concord between governments: a pact or agreement to end hostilities between those who have been at war or in a state of enmity

5: used interjectionally to ask for silence or calm or as a greeting or farewell.

This is certainly a long and a comprehensive list of what the word peace means.  By the way, the word peace is not mentioned in the gospel of John, until Jesus introduces here this morning, in the fourteenth chapter.

In the ancient Jewish world, and in many ancient cultures, and even today, there were and are hospitality rules and customs that many people followed. For example, when someone comes over to our house, we greet them, maybe take their coat, we ask them if they want something to drink or to eat, and etc. Among other hospitality customs, the ancient Jewish people had hospitality rules and customs that were very similar to these one. One such custom was to greet a person and to say goodbye to a person, by saying “Shalom” or peace. “Peace be with you,” is what we sometimes say to each other in church.

Yet, for Jesus Christ, when he said this this morning, I wonder, was this simply a culturally expected greeting, or did he mean it more deeply? I believe myself, that he meant it more deeply, as he explained that the peace he is offering is not the peace that the world offers, but the peace that he offers (Jn. 14:27, CEB).

You know, I have known various people that at different times in their lives have had struggles of all different kinds. Sometimes I or others, among our various prayers and actions, would include helping the person to find peace in God, in Jesus Christ. When we have a lot of stress, worry, or struggle in our lives, it can affect everything we do. It can cause us to get less sleep, to be more edgy or irritable, and etc. Some off the people that I have known that are going through a tough time might even get offended if someone says, “Well I hope you find peace”. Or, “well isn’t that terrible! I pray that you find peace.”

Having peace is not always easy, but Jesus did promise it to us if we trust in him. I also think that the choices that we make and how we chose to live our lives can also affect our sense of peace. Yet finding peace in Jesus Christ, in our Christian faith, is one of the great goals of our faith. As Jesus says that his yoke is easy, and that his burden is light.

I believe that if we truly reach a place in our own lives, whereby we realize the damage of our own sin, our own brokenness, and our manifest need for God’s love, that when we repent to God and ask for forgiveness, we in return, we receive God’s love, God’s grace, the Holy Spirit’s power, and yes, peace. How do I know this? I know this, because I have watched it happen in front of me over and over, and it has happened to me.

I remember when I used to watch Billy Graham’s Crusades for Christ, and I would hear Rev. Graham talking about laying all of our worries, our burdens, and our sins down at the cross of Jesus Christ. Rev. Graham would say how when we did this, we would be offered, freedom, life, light, love, salvation, and peace through Jesus Christ. For those of us who have had a moment of repentance and drawing closer to God, we know what that feels like.

Yet many of us know that God does call us to stay on the mountain top, even though we would like to. Instead, God calls us to go down into the valley, where we will see and experience great suffering and hardship. Keeping our sense of peace in challenging times, is the challenge that all of us people of faith have had, and still have today. Jesus Christ though, gave us this gift called the church, so that we would laugh, cry, struggle, celebrate, and in general, be together. That God might have peace flow from one person unto another.

We certainly live in a world that so often seems so harsh and so unloving. Yet Jesus says “Peace I leave with you. My peace I give you”. Someone might say, “Well pastor, how do we get peace?” I say we do this not only individually, but together. Got has called us not to be rogue agents of faith, but to be together. This is why I believe that Jesus Christ called twelve disciples and not one. Jesus also probably called the twelve disciple, as there are twelve tribes of Israel, but I also believe that Jesus did this, so that we would be together.

When a calamity or a tragedy hits your lives, or my life, can we turn to our brothers and sisters in Christ for help? I know that I can. I know that I have. I have discovered that when I am struggling to have a sense of God’s peace, that one of my sisters or brothers, or many of them, are there to help me find peace in God again.

Some people have asked me, “Pastor, why do we greet our neighbors, before, during, or after church? Why do we say ‘God bless’ or ‘Peace be with you’. Well among other reasons, this is why, because Jesus Christ offers us peace. If we have peace, and if God is using us, God can use us to offer peace to each other.

I think that a bi-product of our own peace, is peace within our families, peace within our church, peace within our communities, peace within our states, peace within our country, and peace within our world. When people are oppressed, when they are starving, and when they are living through war and disease, it is awfully hard to find peace. Yet so often, peace must begin with us.

In the reading from the Book of Acts from this morning, a woman named Lydia and her family converted to Christianity (Acts 16:14b-15b, CEB). In fact, the scripture says, “the Lord enabled her to embrace Paul’s message. Once she and her household were baptized, she urged, “Now that you have decided that I am a believer in the Lord, come and stay in my house.” And she persuaded us.” (Act 16:14b-15, CEB). Lydia and her household repented, were change, and found peace, love, and joy, like never before. Now they probably lost it at points, but that day they had great peace, love, and hospitality, and they shared it with the Apostle Paul and others.

In this morning’s Psalm reading, the Psalmist asked God to bless us, and for us to realize how great God is. The Psalmist writes of God, “so that your salvation becomes known among all the nations. Let the people thank you, God! Let all the people thank you!” (Ps. 67:2b-3, CEB).

 Yet we have times though, where we lose our peace. As a church, as God’s people, we seek peace through God, through Jesus Christ, both individually and together. This is why it is so important that church be a place of peace, love, harmony, and joy. Does it mean that we agree on everything? No, it sure doesn’t. Does it meant that everyone here is in the same political party? No, it sure doesn’t. Jesus Christ though, promises love, light, life, salvation, hope, and peace to all people. He offers it to all of us, without distinction, and if this is true, we must strive to be united in the love, the grace, and the peace of Jesus Christ.

In looking more closely at our gospel of John reading this morning, Jesus says, “Whoever loves me will keep my word. My Father will love them, and we will come to them and make our home with them” (Jn. 14:23, CEB). This morning when Lydia converted to Christianity in the Book of Acts, she told the Apostle Paul and others, come into my home. Let me extend love, peace, joy, and perhaps the near third sacrament of coffee, she might have said.

Jesus then says, “Whoever doesn’t love me doesn’t keep my words. The word that you hear isn’t mine. It is the word of the Father who sent me” (Jn. 14:24, CEB). So number one, according to Jesus, he is the authoritative and true mouthpiece of God, and thereby is God, the word, made flesh. Number two, if we don’t have peace, if we don’t have love, if we don’t have hope, haven’t we at least in that moment lost God? When we lose God, fighting occurs, hardship happens, wars rage, because sinners rage. Sinners rage and often do not have peace.

Jesus then says, “I have spoken these things to you while I am with you. The Companion, the Holy Spirit, who the Father will send in my name, will teach you everything and will remind you of everything I told you” (Jn. 14:25-26, CEB). So Jesus is saying, God has created everything, I have spoken God’s words, and the Holy Spirit will come and teach you more. Jesus is saying that God will send to the disciples, to the early church, the Holy Spirit, in “his name” (Jn. 14:26a, CEB). Jesus is saying then, that in order to truly know God, you must know the Father, the creator, you must know me, the savior, and you must know the Holy Spirit, the third person of God. In knowing Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, you can then more fully understand God’s peace. One of my bible commentaries, the Africa Bible Commentary says of the Trinity, “The Trinity are interested in teaching a particular curriculum” (Africa Bible Commentary, page 1310). Jesus is saying then, that love, that hope, that peace, and salvation, come from God in heaven, through him, and by the power of the Holy Spirit.

Jesus then speaks of the words that were the focus of this sermon this morning. Jesus says, “Peace I leave with you. My peace I give you. I give to you not as the world gives. Don’t be troubled or afraid” (Jn. 14:27, CEB). So as Pontius Pilate asked Jesus Christ, “what is truth,” this morning I pose the question to us all, “what is peace?” To me, peace is fully trusting God, when the whole world around you seems like that it is burning. Not easy to do, but this I believe is exactly what Jesus is asking the disciples and us to do this morning.

The gospel reading this morning concludes with Jesus saying, “You have heard me tell you, ‘I’m going away and returning to you.’ If you loved me, you would be happy that I am going to the Father, because the Father is greater than me. I have told you before it happens so that when it happens you will believe” (Jn. 14:28-29, CEB). I believe that Jesus’s human part of himself was speaking here, as he professes other times that he and God are one in the same.

So do we have peace this morning? If we don’t, why not? Is our lack of peace, due to worry about our family? Is it financial worry? Is it some other problem? While we can pray for and can call upon God for peace, what can we also do for each other with God working through us this morning? Friends, there are days that I struggle to find peace, but today I hope that we may all find the peace that Jesus Christ talked about this morning. So when church ends today, and when we share the love of God, of Jesus Christ, and the peace of God, of Jesus Christ, let us realize just how significant this is. With this said, I say shalom or peace to you, and to all the earth, in the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Amen.

Freeville/Homer Avenue UMC's - Fifth Sunday of Easter - 04/24/16 Sermon - “Love each other"

Sunday 04/24/16 Freeville/Homer Avenue UMC’s

Sermon Title: “Love each other”

                            

New Testament Scripture: Psalm 148

                                            

New Testament Scripture: Revelation 21:1-6

Gospel Lesson: John 13:31-35

          My friends, my brothers and sisters, welcome on this the Fifth Sunday of this season of Easter. This season of resurrection, this season of new life. This season were we proclaim, He is risen! He is risen indeed! We will remain in this season of Easter for two more Sundays, until we reach the holiday of Pentecost on May 15th.

          This Sunday though, I want to talk about love. For many of us, love is an idea. For many of us, love is an emotion. For some of us, love is how we live our lives. For many of us, love is also something that we may discuss every day. Perhaps you tell your husband, your wife, your children, or others that you “love them”. In addition to this, many of us see or hear about love all over the place. We are often told in many places that we are to love and to care for each other. Some of us have heard songs with lyrics like “All you need is love”. Every year on Valentine’s Day, we are inundated with chocolate hearts, cupid, and all of these other signs of love. The word love is truly presented all over the place.

The concept of love is also listed throughout the Bible. For example, one of the most famous Biblical scriptures on love is from 1 Corinthians 13:4-8. This scripture says, ^“Love is patient; love is kind; love is not envious or boastful or arrogant or rude. It does not insist on its own way; it is not irritable or resentful; it does not rejoice in wrongdoing, but rejoices in the truth. It bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things. Love never ends” (1 Cor. 13:4-8, NRSV). This scripture from 1 Corinthians is often read at weddings to emphasize the importance and the significance of the love shared in a marriage. When I read this scripture, I read that love is much more than just an emotion. Instead, love is how we live sacrificially for others. 

The gospel reading that we are given for this morning from the gospel of John, also talks about love. In this gospel reading Jesus says to his disciples, “I give you a new commandment: Love each other. Just as I have loved you, so you also must love each other. This is how everyone will know that you are my disciples, when you love each other” (Jn. 13:34-35, CEB). When I read this scripture at first glance, it seems pretty straight forward. As I read this scripture again and again though, I think that this scripture has much more depth than might originally meet the eye. So Jesus tells us to “love each other”. As I continued to read this scripture over and over, I wondered what did Jesus specifically mean by “love each other”? Did Jesus mean emotions, actions, certain obligations, or something else?

Further, if Christianity is the biggest religion in the world, comprising about one-third of the world, why do we still have wars? Why do we still have suffering?  Why do we still have unkindness and hatred? I mean, we see all around us, the idea of love. If the world still has so many examples of a lack of love, did we all just miss the memo? Did we skip over this scripture? Or maybe, just maybe, I wonder if many Christians over the past two-thousand years didn’t look at how deep that this scripture might be.

As I said, Jesus’ instructions in this scripture seem pretty straight at first glance, but on a deeper level, what did Jesus mean when he challenged us to “love each other”? For me, I believe that Jesus was challenging his disciples and us to do much more than just have the emotion of love. I believe that Jesus was asking his disciples and us to live out our love with each other every day.

While I believe that salvation through Jesus Christ is a free gift that we are offered through the repentance of our sins, what do we do with that saving love from Jesus Christ? If we are to really and fully love each other, I believe that we must often go beyond just the feeling or the emotion of love, to actions, behaviors, and what we do in general.

In the Book of James it says, ^“What good is it, my brothers and sisters, if you say you have faith but do not have works? Can faith save you? If a brother or sister is naked and lacks daily food, and one of you says to them, “Go in peace; keep warm and eat your fill,” and yet you do not supply their bodily needs, what is the good of that? So faith by itself, if it has no works, is dead.” (Ja. 2:14-17, NRSV).

So this morning, Jesus Christ, the savior tells his disciples to “love each other,” and that through this love, the world will know that they are followers of Jesus. I believe then that the challenge for Christians, and the challenge that has existed from day one, is how we extend love to each other.

We may say that we believe in Jesus Christ, and that we believe that we have salvation through him. If the love of God, if the saving grace of Jesus Christ, and if the power of the Holy Spirit is really that great, then how could we possibly just have love in our hearts, and not have it in all other ways?

One of the things that has historically been so powerful about the Christian Church, is that when we do this thing called loving each other well, the church flourishes. When we love and take care of each other, the church is fulfilling an important part of its mission. Christians are called to love all people then, and beyond just the emotion. Christians are called to care for all people, and show love in a variety of ways.

I really think that so many people in this world today are tired of hearing promises, tired or hearing and seeing love in word only. I believe that people are hungry and thirsty for real love and real relationships. When the church operates like a loving family, then we are truly “loving each other”. This is the kind of love that I believe that Jesus spoke of this morning.

When this gospel reading for this morning begins, Jesus tells his disciples “Now the Son of Man has been glorified, and God has been glorified in him. If God has been glorified in him, God will also glorify him in himself and will glorify him at once” (Jn. 13:31-33, NSRV). Jesus is explaining his ministry, why he came, and what he has and will accomplish.

Jesus then says, “Little children, I am with you only a little longer. You will look for me; and as I said to the Jews so now I say to you, ‘Where I am going, you cannot come’ (Jn. 13:33, NRSV).

Jesus then tells his disciples that he is asking them to love each other, the way that he has love them. The same Jesus who fed the poor, healed the sick, and washed the feet of his disciples. I believe that Jesus Christ this morning is asking his disciples and us to love all people like that. I also believe that when we do that, people who see who Jesus Christ is. When people see the love of Jesus Christ working in us and through us, they then will likely have a desire to have Jesus in their own lives. In order for the church to grow, and to have a vibrant future, we must, we have to “love each other”. If we don’t do this, then what makes the church different from the rest of the world? The church needs to be a place of love, caring, and kindness, as the song says, “They will know we are Christians by our love”. You see, I believe that the Christian Church should change the culture, that the culture should not change the Christian Church.

To better illustrate what I believe that Jesus Christ meant this morning when he said “love each other,” I want to read to you something that I read. This writing with stories is called “The Power of Love and the Rise of Christianity”. This writing with stories comes from Henry Chadwick, The Pelican History of The Early Church and Rodney Stark, the Triumph of Christianity. Here is what I read:

“Many historians believe that central to the rise of Christianity was the simple fact that Christians generously loved each other and their neighbours. They point out that in the ancient world mercy was widely seen as a character defect that ran counter to justice. Justice demanded people get what they deserved and was seen as appropriate, where mercy extended grace, love, and kindness to people who had done nothing to deserve it. Yet the Christians valued mercy. Christian communities became places where people tended to live longer and healthier lives, for when they suffered sickness, poverty or mishap they had brothers and sisters in Christ who provided for their need. And Christians extended love way beyond the boundaries of family and congregation to their pagan neighbours.”

“In 251 A.D. for example, a great plague struck the Greco-Roman world. Memories were revived of a plague a century earlier in which more than a third of the population died. Fear was everywhere. Those who could afford it fled to the countryside. Those who could not remained in the cities. When they went to the temples they found them empty, the priests having fled. The streets were filled with those who had become infected, their families left with no option but to push them out the door. Christian communities however took an entirely different approach. They saw it as their responsibility to love the sick and dying, so they took them into their homes and nursed them. This action meant that many people recovered who otherwise would have died. Historians suggest that elementary nursing could have reduced the mortality rate by as much as two thirds, but it also cost a number of Christian carers their lives.”

“In The Early Church, Henry Chadwick comments: The practical application of charity was probably the most potent single cause of Christian success. The pagan comment ‘see how these Christians love one another’ (reported by Tertullian) was not irony. Christian charity expressed itself in care for the poor, for widows and orphans, in visits to brethren in prison or condemned to the living death of labour in the mines, and social action in time of calamity like famine, earthquake, pestilence, or war.”

“So striking was the Christian commitment to generous love that when the fourth century Emperor Julian sought to restore paganism to the Empire he instructed the pagan priesthood to follow the example of the Christians: Why do we think that this is enough, why do we not observe that it is their [Christians] benevolence to strangers, their care for the graves of the dead and the pretended holiness of their lives that have done most to increase atheism [Julian’s word for Christianity]? I believe that we ought really and truly to practise every one of these virtues… For it is disgraceful that, when no Jew ever has to beg, and the impious Galilaeans support not only their own poor but ours as well, all men see that our people lack aid from us.”

My sisters and brothers, I believe that when Jesus told his disciples and us this morning to “love each other,” that he was talking about the kind of love that I just shared. Historically when Christian Church has lived this kind of love, the Christian Church has been strong, growing, and changing the world. May we embrace and live the love that Jesus Christ commanded us to live this day and every day. Amen.

Freeville/Homer Avenue UMC's - Fourth Sunday of Easter - 04/17/16 Sermon - “I have told you, but you don't believe"

Sunday 04/17/16 Freeville/Homer Avenue UMC’s

Sermon Title: “I have told you, but you don’t believe”

                            

New Testament Scripture: Psalm 23

                                            

New Testament Scripture: Revelation 7:9-17

Gospel Lesson: John 10:22-30

          My friends, my sisters and brothers, welcome on this the Fourth Sunday in this Easter Season. This season that is one of new life, one of resurrection, and one where millions upon millions of Christians worldwide declare: He is risen! He is risen indeed!

          We will remain in this season of Easter, this season of resurrection, until Pentecost Sunday on Sunday May 15^th. Pentecost Sunday is the day that we celebrate the power of the Holy Spirit that moved in the disciples and the early church.

          This morning however, we are still in the Season of Easter. Since Easter Sunday a few weeks ago, I have preached on how the Apostle Thomas doubted that Jesus Christ was resurrected from the dead. Last Sunday, I preached on how Jesus was reconciled with the Apostle Peter, after Peter denied him three times. The last two gospel lessons that we have had, and the one from today, connect with doubt and denial. The scriptures get to the core of the questions of “what do we believe?” “Who do we say that Jesus Christ is?”

It would seem that sometimes we are told things in our lives, but we just don’t believe what we are told. Or maybe we believe, but maybe we then get scared, and we say or do something that we don’t mean. This morning some religious leaders ask Jesus, “How long will you test our patience? If you are the Christ, tell us plainly” (Jn. 10:24, CEB).

How many of us here this morning have been told something that was true, and was real, but we didn’t get it or believe it fully? Or how many of us have been told what we should do, but we didn’t do it?

How many of us here were ever told by a parent or a grandparent to not touch those cookies or that desert, because it will ruin our dinner? How many of us were told that if we eat that much sugar that we will get a stomach ache and get sick? Yet how many of us did it anyway. Jesus says this morning, “I have told you, but you don’t understand” (Jn. 10:25, CEB).

 Maybe you have told your children or your grandchildren shortly after getting their driver’s licenses that if they speed they will get a speeding ticket. Then maybe you child or grandchild thought of you and said, “Well what do they know!” Or, “I won’t get caught!” Then for some of us maybe we then got a speeding ticket, or got caught.

For some of us, we were told to not stay up to late at night watching television or listening to the radio, as we would likely be tired the next day for school. For some of us, our parents told us to not go out on a date with that girl, or that boy, as they were “trouble”.

It would seem that for all of us, for our whole lives, we have been told certain truths and or told certain expectations. We also have also been told some things that were not true, or were not necessary. Yet, looking back, can we now say that any of the things that we were told, taught, or shown, were in fact correct? This morning Jesus says “I have told you, but you don’t understand” (Jn. 10:25, CEB).

Were our parents wrong then when they told us to get to bed early, to study for that test, to save our money, and etc.? Sometimes though, I think that we hear the truth, sometimes we even see truth, and sometimes we even experience truth, but yet we sometimes still reject truth.

The Apostle Thomas rejected that Jesus Christ rose from the dead, even though he was presented with truth from the other disciples. Peter denied Jesus Christ three times even though he knew who Jesus was. This morning some religious leaders are asking Jesus who he is. Jesus then says, “I have told you, but you don’t believe” (Jn. 10:25a, CEB). I wonder how many of us have ever had a parent say something like this to us, “see, I told you this would happen if you did this!” Sometimes when we do the things that we do, we know in the back of heads that maybe, just maybe, doing 65 in a 30 in our car, might not be a good idea. Then when we get home with a speeding ticket, what can we say to mom, other than she was right.

This morning in our gospel reading, the problem isn’t that Jesus Christ hasn’t told people who he is, the problem is that some don’t believe it. Sometimes some of us have had experiences were are told something but we doubt, we deny, or we struggle. We also sometimes struggle to know who is telling the truth, and who we can believe.

I know for me this is true in a presidential election cycle. Right now we have five remaining presidential candidates, who all seem to want to convince us that they are the best, and that they are speaking the truth. Who is telling the truth, and who isn’t? Maybe the religious leaders had many people that said many things, and lied. Perhaps they were skeptical and cynical in general.

You know, I have heard folks at different times tell me that they went to the doctor because they didn’t feel well. Sometimes when some of these folks went to the doctor, the doctor told some of these people that there was nothing wrong with them, and sometimes the doctors were right with that assessment. Yet sometimes people have gone to the doctor and the doctor was wrong, and there was a problem.

This morning, the religious leaders seem to not be satisfied with what Jesus has said so far. The religious leaders apparently were not satisfied with the miracles, the teachings, and all that Jesus had done up to that point.

Within this, I think that there also some folks today that believe in Jesus Christ in their heads, but they have never felt God’s presence inside of them. There are some folks that have never heard the voice of God, and have never experienced personally God’s power. You see, I can invite people to church, I can tell them about Jesus Christ, but only God can reveal this to your heart. Only God can fill you with his spirit, and only God can speak in the fullness of grace and truth.

It would seem that this morning that these religious leaders and others heard what Jesus said in their heads, but Christ’s words didn’t enter into their hearts. They didn’t receive the grace, the love, and the power that Christ was offering, and as such, to them it was like a parent telling us what we should or should not do. Until we internalize the words, until they fill us, they are just words, just ideas.

When we come to know Jesus Christ, when we feel his love, when we are moved by the Holy Spirit, we hear his voice. Our faith in Jesus Christ, shouldn’t just be one where believe things in our heads, but one where we feel Jesus in our hearts and our souls. In the Wesleyan or Methodist tradition, we have a tradition of uniting our heads with our hearts.

Many believe in Jesus Christ in their heads, but they haven’t yet felt him in their hearts. I think that this morning, the people that were questioning Jesus had heard and seen him with their heads, but they hadn’t heard or seen him with their hearts. As one of my bible commentaries says it well: listening “includes both hearing with one’s ears and responding in obedience from one’s heart” (Africa Bible Commentary). My brothers and sisters, the day that I repented of my sins to Jesus Christ, and I felt the Holy Spirit literally move through me, on that day, I knew that God was real. On that day, I began to hear his voice, and to follow him.

Before diving into this morning’s gospel reading more closely, we are given this morning, a great Psalm and a scripture from the Book of Revelation. This Psalm, Psalm 23 is a Psalm that many of us know all too well. This Psalm speaks of trusting God, no matter what the circumstances are. Believing that “even in the valley of the shadow of death,” that God is with us. In a similar way, Jesus says in the gospel reading for this morning to believe in him, and to hear him.

In our reading from the Book of Revelation from this morning, that speaks of the second coming of Christ, we hear that people from all over the world are assembled before the throne of God (Rev. 7:9a, CEB). In white robes they praise God, praised Jesus, and their angels were all around (Rev. 7:9-10, CEB). In this scene, Jesus Christ is glorified, and everyone praises his power and his saving grace (Rev. 7:11-17, CEB).

In this Psalm and in this reading from the Book of Revelation, we hear of great faith in God, and in the Book of Revelation reading, of great faith in Jesus Christ. Yet as we look more closely to the reading from the Gospel of John this morning, we have some religious leaders who don’t believe in Jesus. They question him, they doubt. Perhaps they have knowledge in their heads, but they haven’t had a change of heart.

The text of the Gospel begins this morning telling us that, “The time came for the Festival of Dedication in Jerusalem. It was winter, and Jesus was in the temple walking in the covered porch named for Solomon” (Jn. 10:22-23, CEB). As a point of reference, the “Feast of Dedication” is also known as the “Feast of Maccabees,” or most commonly today “Hanukkah” (Jn. 10:22, CEB). This story then occurred during the Jewish holiday of Hanukkah. The “porch named for Solomon” was part of the temple in Jerusalem dedicated to the former King of Israel, King Solomon.

So as Jesus is walking through that part of the temple in Jerusalem that was dedicated to King Solomon, during Hanukkah, the gospel says, “The Jewish opposition circles around him and asked, “How long will you test our patience? If you are the Christ, tell us plainly” (Jn. 10:24, CEB).

Jesus then replies, “I have told you, but you don’t believe. The works I do in my Father’s name testify about me, but you won’t believe because you don’t belong to my sheep” (Jn. 10:25-26, CEB). Jesus is saying you have heard my words, you have seen what I have done in front of you, but your heart has not yet been opened to me.

Jesus then says, “My sheep listen to my voice. I know them and they follow me. I give them eternal life. They will never die, and no one will snatch them from my hand. My Father, who had given them to me, is greater than all, and not one is able to snatch them from my Father’s hand” (Jn. 10:27-29, CEB).

For many of us, we can say that we have heard the voice of God. For many of us, we can say that we have heard Jesus, and as such, we follow him. Sometimes though, whether it be our parents, our family members, or our friends, sometimes they still tell us, “I have told you, but you don’t understand” (Jn. 10:25, CEB).

Today in the world that we live in, some are hostile towards the Christian faith, and some are hostile towards Jesus. Yet I wonder if they have heard his voice? I wonder if they have ever let Jesus touch their hearts?

To end this gospel reading, Jesus says the words, “I and the Father are one” (Jn. 10:30, CEB). Jesus is saying that God and He are one in the same. Jesus declares that he comes in grace and truth, and that the words he speaks are of God and are in God.

When we come to church then, and when a pastor like me tell you about God, Jesus Christ, the power of the Holy Spirit, are you spiritually changed? Or, do we just feel good, and leave spiritual unchanged? Jesus says this morning, “I have told you, but you don’t understand” (Jn. 10:25, CEB). Jesus promises us that in him, there is truth, life, light, love, and eternal life. In order to begin to understand this though, we have to hear him in our hearts, and be changed.

Jesus Christ says in the Gospel of John his seven “I am” Statements. Jesus said, “I am the bread of life. He who comes to Me shall never hunger, and he who believes in Me shall never thirst” (Jn. 6:35, NKJV). Then Jesus spoke to them again, saying, “I am the light of the world. He who follows Me shall not walk in darkness, but have the light of life” (Jn. 8:12, NKJV). “I am the door. If anyone enters by Me, he will be saved, and will go in and out and find pasture” (Jn.10:9, NKJV). “I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd gives His life for the sheep” (Jn. 10:11, NKJV). Jesus said to her, “I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in Me, though he may die, he shall live” (Jn. 11:25, NKJV). Jesus said to him, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me” (Jn. 14:6, NKJV). “I am the true vine, and My Father is the vinedresser” (Jn. 15:1, NKJV).

Some my sisters and brothers, do we know Jesus Christ in our hearts, and well as in our heads, or does Jesus say to us today, “I have told you, but you don’t understand” (Jn. 10:25, CEB). Let us all open our hearts to the love of God, the forgiven and salvation that is offered through his son Jesus Christ, and may be filled and renewed by the power of the Holy Spirit on this day. Amen.

Freeville/Homer Avenue UMC's - Third Sunday of Easter/Native American Awareness Sunday - 04/10/16 Sermon - “Do you love me?"

Sunday 04/10/16 Freeville/Homer Avenue UMC’s

Sermon Title: “Do you love me?”

                            

New Testament Scripture: Acts 9:1-20

                                            

New Testament Scripture: Revelation 5:11-14

Gospel Lesson: John 21:1-19

          My friends, my brothers and sisters, welcome once again on this the Third Sunday of Easter. On this Sunday we proclaim now and always, that “He is risen! He is risen indeed!” We will remain in this season of Easter until Sunday May 15^th, which is the holiday of Pentecost.

          In addition to this Sunday being the Third Sunday of Easter, this Sunday is also Native American Awareness Sunday. Since the Christian Church is a church that spans the globe, and since there are Christians on every continent and in every country, we truly have a global church. There are Christians in Africa, in Asia, far and wide, and some Christians are Native Americans.

          These Native American Christians follow Jesus Christ, but many of them still love of their culture, their tribe of origin, and they value where they came from. In our UNYUMC conference we have churches on Native American Reservations, as do other United Methodist Church conferences.

         

As a church then, we want our Native American brothers and sisters to know that Jesus Christ loves all of his people. That as a global church, the church includes people of all nations, races, and ethnic backgrounds. This is one of the reasons that on this special giving Sunday, that we have an opportunity to give to Native American Awareness Sunday. The United Methodist Church Mission website, which is www.umcmission.org, has this to say about this Sunday: This Sunday “recognizes and supports the contributions of Native Americans to the church and society. The observance, approved by the 1988 General Conference, is one of six special churchwide Sunday offerings.”

“The funds collected will allow The United Methodist Church to partner with existing native ministries and create programs on behalf of Native Americans. Money collected also supports seminary scholarships for United Methodist Native Americans.”

So brothers and sisters if you are interested in donating to this special giving Sunday, please write on the memo line of your check, or if you put money in an envelope, indicate that it is for Native American Awareness Sunday. We will then get these funds to the conference office, and then to the people that need them.

          With this said, last Sunday I preached from the gospel of John 20:19-31, which is famously known as the “Doubting Thomas” story. I talked about how the Apostle Thomas didn’t believe that the other disciples had really seen the risen Christ. Jesus then appeared to Thomas, and Thomas believed.

          I said last Sunday that many of us can say that at one point or another in our own lives that we were like Thomas. That we had some doubts or some struggles with our faith. Yet if we call upon the Lord, God will be faithful to us. We might not get the answer we want, or right away, but God is faithful.

          I give you this overview of what I preached on last week, because Thomas was loved by Jesus Christ. Jesus forgave Thomas for doubting him, and reached out to Thomas even in his doubt.

          This morning we have been given three amazing scriptures. We have the story from the Book of Acts about Saul of Tarsus’ conversion to Christianity. Saul of Tarsus will then be called Paul of Tarsus, or more commonly the Apostle Paul. That is a great and an amazing story, but I passed it up this morning.

          In the Book of Revelation reading from this morning, we have an amazing scripture that is connected to the idea of the second coming of Jesus Christ. That millions upon millions will and do sing of Jesus Christ, by singing worthy is the lamb (Rev. 5:11, CEB). In this scene, they are signing, praising Jesus, and are filled with God’s love, but I passed it up this morning.

          Now as you can imagine, those were two hard scriptures to turn down to preach on. What I chose this morning instead though, was to continue on in the gospel of John, to discuss what occurs after the famous “Doubting Thomas” story.

          The question then that I have for us to think about this morning is this, is it worse to not believe in someone, or is it worse to deny knowing them all together? Let me ask this question one more time. Is it worse to not believe in someone, or is it worse to deny knowing them all together?

I ask you this, because in the gospel of John reading from last Sunday, Thomas denied that the risen Christ had appeared to the other disciples. Yet the gospel never says that Thomas denied knowing or loving Jesus. As far as we know Thomas still loved Jesus very much.

          The gospel reading for this week though is different. The gospel reading for this week is about the resolution of Jesus Christ being denied by the Apostle Peter three times. Specifically, Peter disowning Jesus Christ three times. So what is worse then, denying something about someone you love, or denying that you even know them at all?

          The Apostle Peter, when Jesus Christ was before high priest, denied him three times. When I say that Peter denied Jesus, I mean he disowned him. It would be the equivalency of you telling someone that one of your kids or one of your family members is someone that you don’t know and that you have never met.

          What is even worse, is that Peter was told by Jesus ahead of time that he would deny him three times. I remember watching the movie “the Passion of the Christ,” when Jesus looked at Peter lovingly after he denied him for the third time, and the rooster crowed. The gospel of Luke then says that Peter went out and wept bitterly.

          I bet that Peter was still hurting. Peter needed to be healed, and needed to be reconciled to Jesus Christ. I mean Jesus appeared to Peter and many others, but Peter likely still carried great guilt and even some shame over denying his Lord and master three times.

In this way, in our own lives, maybe we have had moments were we have denied God, or maybe we have had moments where we have said or done things that we later regret. Sometimes the things that we say or do haunt us. Sometimes they replay in our minds over and over like some video tape. Sometimes in these situations, these are the things of nightmares and inner brokenness. Yet in these situations, us like Peter need forgiveness. We need to ask God for forgiveness, but we also need to forgive ourselves.

          The amazing thing about Jesus Christ, is that we can always be forgiven, no matter what. In fact, I remember one weekend some years back now when I was on a men’s Christian retreat. There was a man on this weekend who was in his 70’s. I remember that he told me, “Paul, I have only known the Lord for a few years, and I wished that I had known him when I was your age”. I then told this man, “It’s never too late in this life to come to the Lord”.

          So in the gospel reading for this morning, Jesus appears to Peter and six other disciples on the “Sea of Tiberius,” or the “Sea of Galilee” (Jn. 21:1, CEB). Peter prior this appearance of Christ announces that he is “going fishing” (Jn. 21:3, CEB). How many men that are here today go fishing when you are stressed or upset about something?

          Peter is hurting I think, and perhaps to get his mind off of it, he goes fishing. Or maybe they also needed food. The gospel also says that there were seven disciples there, including Peter (Jn. 21:2, CEB). In addition to Peter, Thomas, Nathaniel, John and James, and two other unnamed disciples were there (Jn. 21:2, CEB). When Peter said that he was fishing, all six of these other disciples wanted to come with Peter (Jn. 21:3A, CEB). The gospel said that they fished all night and caught nothing (Jn. 21:3B, CEB).

          When the morning came, Peter and the other six disciples had caught no fish. Then Jesus stood on the shore of the Sea of Galilee, and called out to them (Jn. 21:4-5A). Now they can’t tell that it is Jesus yet, and then Jesus asks them if they have caught any fish (Jn. 21:5A, CEB). After they said no, Jesus told them to cast their net on the right side of the boat (Jn. 21:5b-6, CEB). When they pulled the net up the gospel says, “there were so many fish that they couldn’t haul in the net” (Jn. 21:6, CEB).

          Then suddenly, the beloved disciple John notices that the man standing on the sea shore all this time, was Jesus (Jn. 21:7a, CEB). Peter then wrapped his coat around himself in jumped in the water to swim to Jesus, and the other six disciples brought the boat back to the shore (Jn. 21:7b-8). These other six disciples hauled in the fishing net full of fish (Jn. 21:8, CEB).

          When they got to the shore, they saw that Jesus started a fired with some fish and bread cooking (Jn. 21:9, CEB). Jesus then says, “Bring some of the fish that you just caught, and this net had 153 fish in it (Jn. 21:10-11a, CEB). Jesus then ate the breakfast he cooked with the seven disciples, and after the breakfast, Jesus spoke specifically to Peter (Jn. 21:12-15, CEB).

          Now remember Peter, or Simon Peter as he is referred to in this is case, is probably hurting from denying Jesus three times. So Jesus says to him, “Simon son of John, do you love me more than these?” (Jn. 21:15a, CEB). Now some scholars would argue that Jesus was asking him if he loved him more than the 153 fish, and other scholars would argue that Jesus was asking him if he loved him more than the other six disciples. If it were the fish though, Jesus is asking Peter if he loves him more than fishing for fish. Peter replies, “Yes, Lord, you know I love you”. Jesus the replies, “Feed my lambs” (Jn. 21:15b, CEB). It is as if Jesus is saying to Peter, I am asking you because you denied me the first time.

          Jesus then asked Peter again, “Simon son of John, do you love me? Simon replied, “Yes, Lord, you know I love you” (Jn. 21:16a, CEB). Jesus then said to Peter, “Take care of my sheep” (Jn. 21:16b, CEB). It is as if Jesus is saying to Peter, I am asking you because you denied me the second time.

          The gospel then says, “He asked a third time, “Simon son of John, do you love me?” (Jn. 21:17a, CEB). The gospel then says, “Peter was sad that Jesus asked him a third time, “Do you love me?” (Jn. 21:17a, CEB). You see I think that Peter was sad, because he was hurting over what he did. Jesus offered him this forgiveness and this reconciliation, but Peter still had to work through it. Peter still had to come Jesus, when Jesus come to him. Peter then says, “Lord you know everything; you know I love you.” Jesus said to him, “Feed my sheep” (Jn. 21:17b, CEB). It is as if Jesus is saying, I am asking you because you denied me the third time.

          When Jesus first met Peter and his brother Andrew, he asked Peter and his brother to follow him. Jesus told them that he would make them “fishers of men”. It is as if Jesus Christ is telling Peter, “I know what you did, and I am glad that you told me you love me three times”. Peter can’t undo what he has done, but can be forgiven and be restored.

          You see Peter was called from the fishing boat to be a “fisher of men,” and yet the risen Christ sees him back on the old boat. Jesus is basically saying, if you love me, and you ask for it, I will forgive you. It is as if Jesus says to Peter and the others further, I have called you not to fish on the water, but for people. I have called you to use the fishing pole of my gospel, the bait of my truth, and the boat that is God’s grace.

          Jesus is saying to Peter and to us, leave the boat and go “feed my lambs” (Jn. 21:15, CEB). Jesus might even say, look I have even given you a net full of fish to get started. Jesus is reminding Peter and the others that they gave up their fishing jobs on the Sea of Galilee, as Jesus offered then new jobs as “fishers of men”. Jesus is telling Peter and the others, to get in the game.

          Being forgiven, forgiving ourselves, and be reconciled to God is something that we can have as long as we are on this earth. We are told then to not go back to the old ways, back to the boat, but instead to follow Jesus Christ in the new path that he has given us. It will get hard sometimes, but Jesus has called you, he has equipped you, and he has asked you to “feed his lambs” (Jn. 21:15, CEB).

          Before departing from Peter and the other six disciples this morning, Jesus says to Peter, “I assure you that when you were younger you tied your own belt and walked around wherever you wanted. When you grow old you will stretch out your hands and another will tie your belt and lead you where you don’t want to go” (Jn. 21:18, CEB). This gospel reading concludes with, “He said this to show the kind of death by which Peter would glorify God. After saying this, Jesus said to Peter, “Follow me” (Jn. 21:19, CEB). Peter and the others made mistakes, but they were forgiven. We can be forgiven.

          Some of us this morning might be hurting, some of us might be thinking of things that we have said or done that we regret. Yet as long as those things hinder us, they will hold us back. Maybe some of us need to go to Jesus this morning, and need to be asked the question, “Do you love me?” Maybe we need God’s love, and maybe we need forgiveness and reconciliation.

          For Jesus Christ calls us from the old and not good ways of our lives, and from our boats. He calls us to the shore, so that we might follow him, share the “Good News” of his gospel, and change the world. My sisters and brothers, Jesus Christ says, if you love me, “Feed my sheep” (Jn. 21:17b, CEB). Let us follow Christ and let us feed and serve each other. Amen.

Freeville/Homer Avenue UMC's - Second Sunday of Easter - 04/03/16 Sermon - “Thomas: the doubter"

Sunday 04/03/16 Freeville/Homer Avenue UMC’s

Sermon Title: “Thomas: the doubter”

                            

Old Testament Lesson: Psalm 150

                                            

New Testament Scripture: Revelation 1:4-8

Gospel Lesson: John 20:19-31

          My friends, my brothers and sisters, welcome once again on this the Second Sunday of Easter. On this day that we still declare, He is risen! He is risen indeed! This season of Easter that were are currently in, will continue for seven Sundays, until we reach Pentecost Sunday on May 15^th. Pentecost Sunday is the Sunday that we wear all red, and that we celebrate the Holy Spirit coming to the disciples and the early Christians in the city of Jerusalem, on the Jewish holiday of Pentecost.

          With that said though, this morning I want to talk about doubt. You know when we question things, when we get discouraged. When are aren’t sure about something. Some of us might have doubts about the future, some of us might have doubts about the strength of our country, and some of us might have doubts about our health. In addition to this, some of us might have doubts about our jobs, or maybe we have many other doubts that I haven’t listed here this morning.

Having doubts, while not good in many instances, is simply part of the reality of being human. How many of us have ever had doubts? How many of us have ever asked “God, why me?”

In my chaplaincy internship, I have had the honor to sit with many patients that are sick, that maybe have cancer, or that maybe are dying. More than once I have been asked the question, “Paul, why did God allow this to happen to me?”

          I think that whether we want to admit it or not, we all sometimes have doubts, pains, and struggles. In the gospel of Matthew, Jesus tells us in 6:34: “So do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will bring worries of its own. Today’s trouble is enough for today” (Mt. 6:34, NRSV). Yet sometimes we still have worries, we still have doubts. How can this be though? I mean if Jesus tells us to not have worry, to not have doubts, and to cast all of our cares upon him, how can we have doubts? Shouldn’t we have nothing but peace, joy, and contentment?

          Has anyone here in the past week experienced any doubt, worry, or anxiety? How could this be though, if we are not to worry, not to have doubt, and not to have fear? The Apostle Paul says in Philippians 4:6-7: “Do not worry about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus” (Phil. 4:6-7, NRSV).

          You see, while we are called to trust God, to trust Jesus, and to call upon the Holy Spirit, we are human, and we are weak. We shouldn’t have worry, doubt, or fear, yet sometimes we do. By the way, the same Apostle Paul that wrote the scripture that I just read from his letter to the Philippians also asked God to remove the thorn from his flesh. The Apostle Paul had his own sufferings, and had his own moments of pain, doubt, and fear.

          I find that so often when we look at people like the founding fathers and the founding mothers of our country, or the Apostles of Jesus Christ, we look at them like “mini-Gods”. Are we to believe that General George Washington never had any doubts that the Continental Army that he was leading could actually defeat the mighty British army in the Revolutionary War? What about the great President Abraham Lincoln. Can you imagine the worry, the doubt, and the fear that he must have had sometimes knowing that so many people were dying every day in the Civil War? I can imagine how President Lincoln felt as he was riding a train to Gettysburg, to give his famous Gettysburg address, just after over seventy-five thousand men had died in battle. Did he have any fears, worries, or doubts on that train ride?

          The Apostles of Christ at one point argued over who was the greatest among them. At one point in the gospels, the Apostles panicked during the storm on the Sea of Galilee, not trusting that Jesus could calm the storm.

          My point of saying all of these things my brothers and sisters, is that there is big difference between salvation and sanctification. Believing in God, asking his son Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of our sins, through the power of the Holy Spirit, is how we obtain salvation. We come to Jesus Christ, we come to newness of life through repentance, through asking Jesus into our hearts, and in making him the Lord of our lives. Yet if this is true, why do we then still struggle sometimes after we have salvation? I thought that coming to know Jesus Christ as our Lord and savior was the recipe to being made into the image of God, or in the Latin the “Imago Dei”.

          My brothers and sisters, salvation, the gift of heaven, the gift of eternal life, is a free gift offered to us all through the cross of Jesus Christ, but sanctification, or being into the image of God, well that takes a lifetime. After we accept Christ, we are called to continue to follow God, as he will continue to mold us and shape us, so that we can become more like him. As a result, sometimes we will still fall down, sometimes we will still struggle, and yes, sometimes we will still doubt.      Being a Christian then, doesn’t mean that we are perfect, it simply means that we have asked for forgiveness of the one who was and is perfect. It doesn’t mean that we have all the answers, but it does mean that we serve a God that does. You see coming to Christ is only the beginning of our faith journey.

          Given this, how many years does it take to become made into the image of God, or the “Imago Dei”? Does it take 20-years, 40-years, 60-years? How many years does it take for us to become much more like God?

          This morning in our Gospel reading we have a famous story that has spawned the phrase “A doubting Thomas”. Has anyone ever heard the phrase “A doubting Thomas”? I have heard this phrase in far more places that just the church. It is a phrase that has been used in many places, for centuries.

          I will be honest with you, I used to think badly of the Apostle Thomas, for being a doubter. Yet Peter denied or doubted Jesus three times, even after Jesus told him that he would do so.

          Now just to set the stage for this gospel reading, Jesus was crucified on Good Friday. All of the disciples, except the beloved disciple, had fled. They were in Jerusalem, but they had abandoned Jesus on his day of crucifixion, including Thomas. I wonder the emotional hurt that Thomas felt knowing that he had abandoned Lord Jesus? After being with Jesus Christ, the King of Kings, and the Lord of Lords for three-years, Thomas and all the others, except for John, abandoned Jesus.

          Then Good Friday turned into Saturday, the day before Easter. I can only imagine how broken and hurt that Thomas and the other disciples must have felt that Saturday, the day before Easter. Maybe Thomas wept out of guilt, out of sadness, or out of hurt.

          Then we have the news of Sunday morning’s Easter Resurrection, where Mary Magdalene goes and tells the disciples that Jesus Christ had risen. This is where today’s gospel reading begins.

          The gospel reading for this morning says, “It was still the first day of the week. That evening, while the disciples were still behind closed doors because they were afraid of the Jewish authorities, Jesus came and stood among them” (Jn. 20:19, NRSV). The gospel then says, “He said, “Peace be with you.” After he said this, he showed them his hands and his side. When the disciples saw the Lord, they were filled with joy. Jesus said to them again, “Peace be with you. As the Father sent me, so I am sending you” (Jn. 20:20-21, NRSV).

          Jesus having promised that the “helper” or the Holy Spirit would come and fill them, gave them a little dose of this. In John 20:22 it says, “Then he breathed on them and said, “Receive the Holy Spirit” (Jn. 20:22, NRSV).

          So how does “doubting Thomas” fit into this story? Well the gospel then says, “Thomas, the one called Didymus, one of the Twelve, wasn’t with the disciples when Jesus came. The other disciples told him “We’ve seen the Lord!” But he replied, “Unless I see the nail marks in his hands, put my finger into the wounds left by the nails, and put hand into his side, I won’t believe” (Jn. 20:24-25, NRSV).

          So ten of the remaining eleven disciples saw the risen Christ, and then they told Thomas about it. Mary Magdalene and the other women present also told Thomas, but he didn’t believe them. He doubts them. I wonder though, was Thomas doubting because he was afraid? Was Thomas being selfish? Or could Thomas maybe have been in so much emotional pain that he didn’t want to falsely get his hopes up? While we are all supposed to believe in and trust in God, sometimes we struggle, sometimes we doubt, sometimes we worry. I wonder if any of us have ever felt like Thomas?

          I mean don’t get me wrong, the fact that Thomas doubted was not a good thing at all, but haven’t we all been Thomas at one point or another? Didn’t God then forgive our doubt, our worry, and our fears, as God always does, when we ask him? Didn’t Jesus forgive Peter for denying him three times?

          So to complete this gospel of John story, the gospel says, “After eight days his disciples were again in a house and Thomas was with them” (Jn. 20:26a, NRSV). So for another eight days, Thomas doubts and doesn’t believe that Jesus is alive, that he is resurrected. I can only imagine how bad Thomas must have felt during these eight additional days.

          The gospel then says, “Even though the doors were locked, Jesus entered and stood among them. He said, “Peace be with you” (Jn. 20:26b, NRSV). The greeting of peace or “Shalom” in Hebrew was a common greeting in ancient Jewish culture, and it still is very much practiced today. In many churches we still share the peace or the love of Christ every Sunday.

          The gospel then says, “Then he said to Thomas, “Put your finger here. Look at my hands. Put your hand into my side. No more disbelief. Believe!” (Jn. 20:27, NRSV).

          Then the gospel says, “Thomas responded to Jesus, “My Lord and my God!” Jesus replied, “Do you believe because you see me? Happy are those who don’t see me and yet believe” (Jn. 20:28-29, NRSV).

          This gospel reading then ends by saying, “Then Jesus did many other miraculous signs in his disciples’ presence, sings that aren’t recorded in this scroll. But these things are written so that you will believe that Jesus is the Christ, God’s Son, and that believing, you will have life in his name” (Jn. 20:30-31, NRSV).

          So, should we have worries, fears, doubts, and anxiety? No, we shouldn’t, but we all have them from time to time. The apostles had them. The founding fathers and mothers had them. I’m pretty sure that President Abraham Lincoln had them.

          What I have learned then is this, when I am sitting at the bedside of someone who is dying, who is doubting, and they ask me, “Paul, why is this happening? Why did God allow this to happen?” I have learned that I don’t need to have all the answers. All I need to do is be present, so that God can work through me. For God is in control. All I need to do is trust him, and get out of my own way, so that he may use me to his glory.

          So perhaps we have all been a “doubting Thomas” at one point or another, yet for many of us, we can say that God’s brought us through. So on this day and always, let us love each other, let us encourage each other, and let us lift up each other, in the name of Jesus Christ. So that we might all declare what Jesus told Thomas on this day, “No more disbelief! Believe!” (Jn. 20:27b, NRSV). For God is good. Amen.