Community Church Sermons
Year B
March 29, 2009
The
Fifth Sunday in Lent
Jeremiah 31:31-34
John 12:20-33
They wanted to see Jesus!
Isn’t that a wonderful way of describing the people who came to Philip that day?
“We want to see Jesus!” they said.
Now we are told that these Jesus-seeking people are Greeks who went up to Jerusalem to worship at the feast of Passover. These are Gentile people who have become attracted to the God of the Jewish people, and they come to the Temple to worship. But as much as they are drawn to the God of Israel, they are not so enamored with the requirements of the religion of Israel, most especially the part calling for circumcision. Circumcision was the sign that you were now included in the covenant God had “cut” with Abraham. It was a sign that you belonged to the club. Here in Tellico Village, we get a POA card. Out in the streets, gangs have tattoos. Dennis Astrella and I cut our fingers and became blood brothers. But the Jewish religion wanted a cut of a deeper kind, and these Greeks wanted no part of that! Can’t say I blame them!
“We want to see Jesus!” they said.
Isn’t that an interesting thing to say!
Over the years, I have listened to many people tell me they do not believe in God. Some of those people come out of life-experiences devoid of any religious influence. Others were raised and nurtured in a faith, but have now abandoned it. All of us know people like this, and there may be some of those folks here today.
If you are one, I sincerely say, “Welcome!”
You see - you doubters, questioners and flat-out unbelievers have it right! In fact, you have it more right than some of the strongest believers do!
I love to have conversations with those who are on the outside of faith. They are fascinating people to listen to. They are smart. They are perceptive. And often, they possess a kind of wisdom desperately needed in the church today. I’m reminded of this every time I have dialogue with one of these nonbelievers and ask the question, “Would you tell me about this God you don’t believe in?”
And they tell me! With great
passion, they will tell you about their inability to believe in a God who
doesn’t seem to like people very much, who inflicts punishment on innocent
children, who creates rules that are impossible to keep and then inflicts wrath
upon us for not keeping them. They go to great lengths explaining their
inability to believe in a God who seems to say, “Love me, or I’ll kill you.”
And then they talk about their experiences with the people of this God, people who often seem to care more about enforcing antiquated laws than preserving and promoting human life, and who are often judgmental, self-righteous, and sometimes just plain mean. And some of those who have grown up in the church but have since left will tell you horror story after horror story about how the church wounded them, and sometimes even abused them.
If you know a person like that, take a moment one day to ask them to tell you about this God they don’t believe in.
And then ask them what kind of God they COULD believe in. And they will tell you that, too.
They will share with you about their desire to find a God who not only loves people, but actually LIKES us – a God whose grace is so expansive that it can include everyone, no matter their race, color, gender, or creed – a God who understands how hard it is to be human and to make choices in a world that contains much more gray than black and white – a God who can bring people together and not drive them apart - a God whose number one command is to love and who inspires us to work together to build a better world. They could believe in a God like that!
So here are these Greeks, and they are up at the Temple in Jerusalem. They are wondering what in the world being circumcised has to do with being faithful.
And they are curious about a man who has come up to Jerusalem for the Passover who is reported to have raised someone by the name of Lazarus from the dead!
And so with the rules and regulations of their religion in one hand, and the rumor of a life-giving faith in the other, these Greeks seek out Philip and say:
“We want to see Jesus!”
I’ve heard people say this very same thing:
My friend Kevin who was sexually abused by a clergy person and in the process lost his religion, but even today is searching desperately for healing, acceptance and hope. Without words, Kevin is saying, “I want to see Jesus.”
A family whose son ended his own life, leaving them with tremendous guilt and remorse for not knowing how desperate he was, and who discovered through that nightmare that their religion was inhospitable to the victims of suicide. Even today, they struggle with the stigma that came along with their loss. And they long to find a loving embrace that can bring them peace and give dignity to their child. Without words, they are saying, “We want to see Jesus!”
Poor people seeking economic justice – hungry people simply wanting the ability to feed their families – lonely people desperately desiring a friend – imperfect people who yearn for a way to overcome their mistakes – dying people needing hope for life beyond death…
All around us, people are saying, “We want to see Jesus!”
There comes a time in all our lives when religion isn’t enough anymore. When you get pushed up against life’s wall, it doesn’t much matter anymore whether you eat meat on Friday, or can recite the Apostles Creed, or believe in the substitutionary atonement. When the world caves in on you it no longer matters whether you are Protestant or Catholic, Christian or Jew, Methodist, Presbyterian, Lutheran, or Interdenominational. There are some things in life you just can’t circumcise.
And in desperation, we cry out to be raised from the death of our experience!
“We want to see Jesus!” they said after hearing the rumor. Someone was coming into the city who somehow lived beyond the limitations of religion, and had actually raised a dead man back to life! And if Jesus could do that for Lazarus, maybe he can bring life to me!
How about you? In a world that is virtually overrun by religion, wouldn’t it be great to see a day when we could find new life beyond commandments, doctrines, rituals, and rules?
The Old Testament prophet Jeremiah spoke of such a day:
“The time is coming, declares the Lord, when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel…I will put my law in their minds, and write it on their hearts. I will be their God, and they will be my people. No longer will a man teach his neighbor, or a man his brother saying, ‘Know the Lord,’ because they will all know me, from the least of them to the greatest…For I will forgive their wickedness and remember their sins no more.” – Jeremiah 31:31-34
Jeremiah was speaking of a Savior.
And on a day long ago in Jerusalem, some God-fearing Greeks wondered if they’d found him.
“We want to see Jesus!” they said.
And I invite you today to come and see Jesus. Bring your struggles, wounds, doubts, and hopes with you. Come and see Jesus.
And I challenge us as a church and as individual Christians to be less concerned with preserving our comfort, our doctrinal correctness, and our propensity for taking care of ourselves, and become much more concerned about letting others see Jesus in us.
“We want to see Jesus!” they said that day long ago.
And people are still saying it today!