A Sermon by Pastor Tom Lacey . . .

Believing … and “LIving”

John 20:19-31, Preached at Congregational Church of Boca Raton, April 19, 2009

A bagpiper was asked by a funeral director to play at a graveside service for a homeless man who had no family or friends. The burial was to be at cemetery in the remote countryside and this man would be the first to be laid to rest there. He was not familiar with the backwoods area and, being a typical man, did not stop for directions. He finally arrived an hour late, saw the backhoe and the crew who were eating lunch but the hearse was nowhere in sight. He apologized to the workers for his tardiness and stepped to the side of the open grave, where he saw the vault lid already in place. He assured the workers he would not hold them up for long but this was the proper thing to do. The workers gathered around, still eating their lunch. He played out his heart and soul. As he played the workers began to weep. He played like he'd never played before, from “Going Home” and “The Lord is My Shepherd” to “Flowers of the Forest,” closing the session with “Amazing Grace,” and walked to his car. As he opened the door and took off his coat, he overheard one of the workers saying to another, "Sweet Mary'n Joseph, I never seen nothin' like that before, and I've been putting in septic tanks for twenty years."

Believing can do a lot of things, but I’m not sure there’s much to work with there. Rev. Rick Lemburg, pastor of the First Presbyterian Church in Casa Grande, Arizona describes himself as "a Presbyterian by earthquake."  He explains that his grandmother, a Baptist, moved the family from Iowa to California many years ago. A Presbyterian pastor visited her and invited her to come to the Presbyterian church. "I'm a Baptist," his grandmother said, "and it will take an act of God to get me to change." While they were chatting, an earthquake shook the home.  Being from Iowa, she wasn't sure what it was, but when it was over, she told the pastor, "I'll join." 

I wish faith were that easy, don't you? I wish God would give each of us some unmistakable sign, perhaps not an earthquake, but some less frightening indication of His interest in our affairs. I believe it was Woody Allen who said that a million dollars deposited in a Swiss bank account would be a nice gesture. Nothing too dramatic. Well, that is not exactly true, is it? Actually, it would have to be awfully dramatic. We are pretty good at explaining away even the most stirring of miracles. Faith is not easy. God never meant for it to be. It is part of the struggle we go through in order to fit our souls for heaven. 

Last week was wonderful. I needed that service. I always need Easter. I love the hope and joy that come through that day. I love the fact people come in new clothes or the fact that for some this is their one trip to church a year. I love the special music and the energy that was in this place. I wish it could be Easter every week. Well, now scripturally, and liturgically speaking, it is still Easter. Today we find the disciples locked in a house out of fear, and confusion. They are scared because they first witnessed Jesus die. But now Peter and another disciple have seen the empty tomb. Mary Magdalene has spoken with the risen Christ, and she has told the disciples about it. They cower in fear in this locked house wondering what to do. They feared the fact that they may suffer the same fate as Jesus. The Jewish leaders may try to squelch the rebellion even more by taking out Jesus’ followers. They thought they may be blamed for his missing body and suffer because of that. And thus they wait behind locked doors, as quiet as they can be, fearing every footstep in the street below. And a number of them will die, sooner or later, for their connection with Jesus. This room contains many of the first Christian martyrs. It is in the midst of this fear mongering and anxious behavior that Jesus shows up.

Still, it is a little strange when you think about it: The disciples spend the evening of Easter Day behind locked doors. You'd think they would be off celebrating, announcing to anyone who would listen that Jesus is alive again. Instead, they hide out. They act like disciples whose leader is dead. Whether or not their attitude is justified, it is apparent that fear dominates them. That puts them in the same group with so many other people. Those dominated by fear include many of the people we see around us every day and even some of us here this morning. These disciples have plenty of company on the evening of the first Easter Day when fear keeps them inside a locked room. It is to his fearful disciples that the risen Christ chooses to appear. It’s because they have yet to believe.

John’s Gospel puts a premium on believing. Believing means being drawn in and being connected from heart to heart. Belief is not an opinion but the foundation of one’s life. The one foundation for us is that Jesus is the Risen Christ, and through believing this you have life in his name. Now and forever. But at times this belief seems more like a gift still to be given, not a possession in our pocket.

Jerry Kramer was a member of a team that once dominated the National Football league-the awesome Green Bay Packers under Coach Vince Lombardi.  Kramer is also an articulate man who has authored two best-selling books about his experiences. In his most recent book he reflects on his own sense of mortality. His words would be helpful for many of us. He writes, "I think a lot about death these days, which is funny, too, because I've never been healthier. I've had only one serious illness in the past ten years, only one near death experience. I haven't broken a bone, not even a finger, since I stopped playing football sixteen years ago. My weight is not bad, about 240, twenty pounds less than when I stopped playing, and most of the time I feel awfully good. And yet now, more than ever, I sense that I am mortal. A year ago, I lost my father to cancer, and I don't think I'll ever get over his death. In some ways, I think it was more difficult for the family than it was for him. Dad was a very religious man and he was ready to go. He had his faith and he said he was locked in the arms of the Lord. Sometimes I wish I had that kind of faith. But I don't. I just have questions."

There is this one great and true thing you can believe that will truly transform your life, and that is that Jesus Christ is the Lord of Life. The writer John concludes our lesson for the day with these words: “Jesus did many other miraculous signs in the presence of his disciples which are not recorded in this book. But these are written that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in his name.” By believing in Christ, you and I can have life. Abundant life, eternal life. Life that is meaningful and fulfilling. Life with purpose and power. Life with God in it.

But our fears can get to us. What are these fears we experience? Some are announced in the headlines: illnesses for which no cure is known, a faltering economy, wars and rumors of wars. Other fears are more personal, more private: a bad medical report, a broken marriage, a career that crashes. We feel fear when there's no money to pay the mortgage; when our child's report card is a disaster; when we come back to find our home broken into, our possessions rifled; when fears flare up in our hearts, it's easy to forget God, and it's time to remember God. The disciples forgot for a time, there in that upstairs room. We may forget also, but Christ does not forget us. He comes to us with vivid reminders in his feet and hands and side that death, the source of so much fear, has been conquered. The disciples rejoiced when they saw the Lord. And we also can rejoice, when in the midst of fears we recognize Christ here with us. It’s not that fear is simply swept away; rather, fear no longer dominates our lives. 

Some of us really know what it means to give it over to the Lord. Bishop Will Willimon tells a story about when he was visiting with a man a couple days before his death. He asked him how he was feeling now that he knew he was at the end and was he fearful. The man replied, “Fear? No. I’m not fearful because of my faith in Jesus.” “We all have hope that our future is in God’s hands,” the Bishop said, somewhat piously. “Well, I’m not hopeful because of what I believe about the future,” he corrected, “I’m hopeful because of what I’ve experienced in the past.” The Bishop asked him to say more. The man continued, “I look back over my life, all the mistakes I’ve made, all the times I’ve turned away from Jesus, gone my own way, strayed, an gotten lost. And time and again, he came back for me. He found a way to get to me, showed up and got me, looked for me when I wasn’t looking for him. I don’t think he’ll let something like my dying get in the way of his love for me.”

We should give our lives over to the one who can reach us no matter where we go, what happens to us, and who has us. There is nothing that can stop our resurrected Savior from reaching us; neither walls, nor fears, nor time. As scripture says, “…(W)e are more than conquerors through him who loved us. For I (Paul) am convinced that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor rulers, nor things present, nor things to come, nor powers, nor height, nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.” Rom.8:37-38

There’s a peppy little ditty by Jim Reeves that is so much fun to sing, not that I’m going to. It seems to affirm the basic truth of our faith passed on from generation to generation: “Gimme that old time religion, Gimme that old time religion, Gimme that old time religion; It's good enough for me. It was good for dad and mother, it was good for dad and mother, it was good for dad and mother; And it's good enough for me.”

Nice sentiment, but it's actually dead wrong. Somebody else's religion is never good enough for you. It's got to be your own, first person singular, personal faith; your own belief. You have to believe, believe in Christ Jesus, Savior, Risen Son of God, Lord of Life, Lord of your own life.

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