These first 3 weeks in my new church are all about things that are important to me and my story of faith. Last week, it was my favorite passage about Jesus calming the storm. This morning, it is the story of Jesus and his righteous anger in the temple. As I opened my computer this morning, my sermon was the first to pop up. Here is a snippet.
Jesus is fully human, with all that our nature entails. In any moment, as we study God’s word, we know Jesus to be righteously angry or troubled to the point of weeping. What’s different with Jesus though, is that he is in the already and the not yet as God, Emmanuel – God with us. This concept is what invites us into a relationship with our creator and our Savior. This is where we are expected to accept the invite and become active members of the kingdom of God, working with the belief that we see it come to fruition when we meet Jesus in glory. This already – not – yet theology is what, for me, makes faith real and possible. That, Jesus, my Lord and Savior, the one who knows me to every core of my being, even in my mistakes, still loves me. My Jesus flips tables knowing that we can be better. My Jesus weeps as the world prioritizes money over feeding children. My Jesus has an eye on the future knowing that he has every every crooked path straight. 1 John 3:2 says, “Dear friends, now we are God’s children, and it hasn’t yet appeared what we will be. We know that when he appears we will be like him because we’ll see him as he is.”
Friends, as he is… well, he is human. He knows us. He knows that we get winded because we are overweight. He knows that we are tired because we stayed up too late watching tv. He knows that we are hungry because we skipped breakfast and the coffee isn’t cutting it. He knows that we are weary from watching the news and hearing of another suffering. He knows and he knows what the kingdom looks like. He longs for that day for us. He longs for that day when we are on that hike and we reach the peak. He longs for that day when we have a calm assurance of our faith. He longs for that day when we, as a common humanity, put the needs of the least of these first in all aspects of our lives. He longs for that day when righteous anger is no longer needed, and we can simply know the peace of Heaven.
God of all aspects of our lives, thank you for sending us your son, our Savior Jesus Christ, the one who knows all that there is to know about our lives. It is reassuring to hear that you, in all your wisdom, know what our humanity is like. We are a creation that knows pain, grief, sorrow. We also know joy, hope, and the potential of our faith. By your wisdom, your vision, God, may we know hope in tomorrow. May we know that the things of this world are temporary, and your love is eternal. May your wisdom guide our ways. May we do your kin-dom building work. Amen.
My ah-ha this morning – God knows what it is like when I lose my glasses. Sometime between 5:30 and 6 this morning, after a sleepy outside with the pups, I have misplaced them. I have a second pair, so I am ok. But, geeze! Of all mornings to preach about being human!
1 John 3:2 as I quoted above is a passage is a part of the passage that reminds us that we are part of God’s children. Those who are “born of God” strive daily to live in God’s ways, not th e ways of the world. We may never know the full extent of God’s ways in our lifetime, but we work for that day when we meet Jesus face to face. That work: side with the least of these. That work: help not hinder. That work: peace over division. That work: empower and celebrate rather than step on and denigrate.
John Wesley taught us that those who experience a “new birth” in and with God experience the changes on the inside; affecting the outside. We see the world anew – with eyes of hope, possiblities, and great potential. We respond to this gift of grace through faith, love and prayer. We respond to this gift of grace with the best of intentions that keep us aligned with God’s values.
I know that it is a dailiy struggle to keep on keeping on. I know it is a daily walk in faith to stay in relationship with my creator, the one who truly knows everything about me. I get it. I fall short at times. We all do. I am confident, personally, in my own “new birth” moments that my heart is in this for Jesus. My heart is intent on building up the kin-dom of God. And, when it isn’t. I am confident that grace abounds. What about you? Do you have that assurance that all will be ok, in your faith? In your heart? What do you need to know that peace in your life? We are all human after all, Jesus too.
Facing the Storm with Faith 