Psalm 66:8-2o
1 Peter 3:13-22
John 14: 15-21
Last week an American radio
preacher Harold Camping, garnered a significant amount of attention by
predicting the end of the world. He said that May 21st would be the
day. Well May 21st has come and gone and we are all still here, and
things carry on as they normally do. Camping has revised his prediction a bit, has said that a
spiritual judgment has occurred and now the world will end in October. While
the date of his prediction may have been incorrect, the pastor did manage to
raise a significant amount of
anxiety, even fear in the hearts of people, with comments such as “it will be a
horror story we cannot possibly conceive of”.
More than a few pastors have found it
necessary to do some extra preaching and teaching on end times theology, what
is technically called eschatology. If they are responsible, these pastors will
be offering biblically-based critiques of the pastor’s words, and point out
that it is not for us to know the date and time of Christ’s return to earth
(Matthew 24:36). Undoubtedly those critical of the Christian church will use
the pastor’s words as more ammunition in their charge that Christian is a
far-based, judgmental religion, that feeds on fear and promotes insecurity.
But
I would invite you to contrast the pastor’s words with those of Paul, which we
hear in today’s reading from Acts. These passages describes the Apostles’ visit
to Athens. Now, considering the
nature of the Greek religion--its range of gods and goddesses and the visual
depiction of them in statues, and the cult surrounding them--one might expect a
person in Paul’s position to offer a round denunciation of what he saw, and an
ardent appeal for a conversion to Christianity. One would expect words of
condemnation and a warning of imminent judgment and damnation. Indeed, it would
have been very easy for the Apostle to stand in front of the Areopagus spitting
hell fire and brimstone.
But we
don’t read that. Instead we read about the Apostle acknowledging the
religiosity of the Athenian Greeks. They are a religious people and he tells them that plainly. He
acknowledges their concern with fundamental and profound questions of being and
meaning. Paul acknowledges a
fundamental concern which has
fueled the religious quest across time, culture, language and space. He says, “
I see how extremely religious you are in every way” and in so doing he creates a bridge—a bridge
between the Greek outlook and the
gospel he has been entrusted to proclaim.
The apostle
builds the bridge by acknowledging how God has made himself known to the
Greeks. Even within the context of
culture society, language, and religion much different from his, Paul
acknowledges that God has shown himself to the Greeks. And this revelation is the basis of Paul’s
discussion. Paul doesn’t waste his
words condemning the Greeks for getting it wrong, but rather, invests his
energy in showing them where God is at work. The important thing for Paul is
not about getting religion right. The central plank of Paul’s platform is about
what God has done, what God is doing, and what God is going to do through
Christ. The basic message of Paul
to the Greeks is that they have spent a lot of time and energy searching for
God—building idols and temples and systems. They have spent a lot of time at
religion—at trying to reach God. What he is telling them is that the search is
over. They need not look for God because God has found them.
A
moment’s reflection shows that the place and time we live in is really not that
different from the Greek culture Paul encountered all those years ago. It is
said that we live in a largely irreligious society, that religion isn’t
important, that religion doesn’t matter to people. I’m inclined to disagree.
The religious impulse is strong, even in those who confess no religious
affiliation or belief in god. People are hungering for something—something which they
cannot define, but they know that they need. There are many idols worshiped in
this society. Money, success, looks,
property—whatever people place highest value on becomes gods for them. And
there are many misguided spiritual paths, which are fashionable, inviting and
seductive. Simply take a look at
the religion and spirituality section of the big book stores as evidence for
this. And the easiest thing for a preacher to do is simply condemn, and
pronounce a death sentence on it all.
But that’s not the approach which Paul models for us. Paul is a bridge
builder. He builds a bridge between the Greeks and the Gospel by acknowledging
where God is working in the Greek heart and mind. It was working in their
understanding of the “unknown God”. Paul tells them about the God who they are worshipping,
but did not know . He said, “ What therefore you worship as unknown, this I
proclaim to you. The God who made the world and everything in it, he who is
Lord of Heaven and earth, does not live in shrines made by human hands, nor is
he served by human hands as though
he needs anything, since he himself gives to all mortals life and breath and
all things.”
Where is
the unknown God found today? The unknown God is found just
beyond the fingertips of all the searchers and gropers in this time and place
and culture and society. All of those people who are looking for forgiveness
but have not found it. All of
those people who long for comfort but have none—who long for peace which
remains elusive.. All of those people who search for community but have not
found it. All of those people who are on a never ending quest for meaning an
enlightenment, but still feel empty. The unknown God lies beyond all human
efforts to reach him. The unknown
God destroys all false gods and brings to ruin human attempts to be God.
The
good news of the gospel is that the reaching, the searching—all that is unnecessary. This is what Paul said to the Greeks.
Paul is telling them that God is not far from each of them. God is not far from
each of us. God is closer than we could imagine or conceive. “In him we live
and move and have our being”. Where
there is truth, there is God. Where there is peace, there is God. Where there
is beauty there is God. Where there is justice there is God. Indeed, where
there is life and breath and all good things, there is God. God is the source
of all life. God brought all life into being through his Word, his living Word
who is Jesus Christ—the God who has defeated death, and promised an incredible
future of eternal life to all who trust in Him.
Paul
calls the Greeks to trust in God—the one true God who raised Jesus from the dead.
The same God who has given you all good things is the same God who raised Jesus
from the dead and promised you ultimate goodness. Amidst all of the idols you
worship, the one true God is alive and active. This is Paul’s proclamation.
But
Paul would not have been able to make that proclamation if he had not first
constructed a bridge—a bridge between the gospel and the understandings and
outlooks of the people to whom he was speaking. In these passages Paul gives us the model for evangelism.
Paul gives us the method of proclamation, and it is based on
understanding—understanding where people are and where people are coming from
Christians are not called to condemn people but to engage them, so that they
too would hear the good news of the Gospel. We are called to meet—to meet
people where they are. This
engagement can occur in a variety of contexts and settings—perhaps in places we
might least expect.
Mission
and evangelism are words which not everyone is crazy about. Much of the reason
for that goes back to European colonial history, when the church across
denominations co-operated with nation-states to subdue aboriginal people. The shadow left by residential
schools, and laws outlawing cultural and religious practices of first nations
people, is indeed a long one, and the healing journey continues. Might things have been different had a
process of bridge building and conversation occurred instead? The model Paul gives us for evangelism
is not based on force; it is based on bridge building.
But what about judgment? What about the end of the
world? These are spiritual realities of which the Bible speaks, and
we cannot overlook them because they might make us feel uncomfortable. It is easy to dismiss Pastor Camping as
some kind of nut, but that there will be a day of judgment is a spiritual
truth. In today’s lesson Paul tells us plainly God has fixed a day on which he
will have the world judged in righteousness. Yes this is true. But this day is
not something to be dreaded or feared: for God has made an incredible promise.
And that promise says that God, through Jesus Christ, has done something
incredible for you. If the day of judgment is something which creates anxiety
in people, the question needs to be asked: Why
am I afraid? There is no reason, because God has promised to forgive all
repentant sinners. God has called the world to repent for a reason—so that all
people would enjoy his incredible gift.
Through his
life, death, and resurrection, has given you the gift of eternal life. Through Christ you have been given all
which you need. This gospel, this good news ,must be the basis of all Christian
proclamation. In Mark 16:16, the resurrected Christ commands his disciples: “
Go into the world and preach the gospel to the whole creation.” He says nothing about announcing doom
and gloom and predicting days for the end of the world. We are called to lead
with Christ’s promise, and that promise is the best news ever. That promise is
embodied in baptism, the visible sign of God’s love for us.
But the
reality is: being a Christian in this world is not easy. It never has been. The
clearest evidence for that comes from the readings presented before us today.
Those who confess Jesus Christ as Lord and Saviour are going to have
difficulties precisely because they confess Christ. Paul did his best to build
bridges with the Athenians. But as we read on past today’s lesson we hear that
Paul’s message was met with mockery, that there were only three converts. But
this didn’t stop Paul from proclaiming the gospel, from proclaiming the good
news. I
It is so
very easy and tempting to retreat in the face of opposition and scorn—to back
off. Yes, Paul models bridge-building, but about the Gospel he is
uncompromising. And so we are also called to be uncompromising about the truth:
for we are called to be a light to the world, not follow the world. And this
involves our total being: what we
say, how we speak, how we manage our resources, what we do with our bodies.
What scripture teaches us, and what the world says is the way to go is
sometimes even often diametrically opposed, and we are confronted with
decision. And our decision must always be for Christ.
And that’s
a tough call. It’s tough, but we are not alone. We are not alone as we contend with the reality of sin and temptation, and seemingly insurmountable
opposition. In today’s gospel lesson Jesus assured his disciples that he would
not leave them orphaned, that he would send the advocate, the Holy Spirit, the
great counselor who would guide them and comfort them. Those disciples would
not be alone. And we are not alone—not alone as we carry out our call to
faithfulness and obedience. It is all to easy to get overly comfortable. It is
tempting as a congregation to be static and inward focused, to play it safe, to
settle into a nice social club mentality. But that is not what we
are called to do. We have been called to be stewards of the gospel, and effective
stewardship requires courage, it requires trust. But we are not alone. God is
with us—with us until the day when the world will end, when the world will be
judged, and there will no longer
be any mystery about who God is. Until that day, God has promised us God’s
presence. Today, we continue our celebration of Easter, of this incredible gift
of the unknown God who has made himself known as the God of resurrection. Now
may that peace of the God, the peace which surpasses all understanding, guard
your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus. Amen.
