Community Church Sermons
Year B
November 4, 2012
Twenty-Third Sunday After Pentecost
Footsteps
Revelation
21:1-6a
Rev. Rhonda
Abbott Blevins
Associate
Pastor
The
other day I was thinking back to some of the family vacations we took when I
was a kid. I was fortunate that every summer my parents found a way to take us
to the beach—sometimes Myrtle Beach or Panama City or Daytona. I always looked
forward to those times of fun in the sun with my Mom, Dad, and big brother.
Each of us enjoyed these trips for different reasons—Dad got a week off from
work, us kids got an entire week of swimming in the ocean and playing in the
surf. Mom? Mom loved to soak in the rays. Dad would sometimes
take us kids on long walks down the beach to give Mom her much-needed “Mom”
time with nothing but the sunshine and a good book. One of my favorite games to
play on these long walks down the beach with Dad was trying to walk in his
footprints—quite a challenge since his stride was two or three times the length
of mine. But I would hop along, trying to walk in my father’s footsteps.
He’s
been deceased for twelve years now, but I realize more and more every day, I
still walk in his footsteps.
I
walk in the footsteps of so many people, saints of God, who have gone before.
We all do, don’t we. I walk in the footsteps of my father and all four
grandparents. My husband is a widower, and in many ways I walk in the footsteps
of his late wife, and I’m honored to do so.
What
about you? Whose footsteps do you walk in? A parent, a
grandparent, a spouse, a child?
We
Americans—we’re kind of funny. We’re so individualistic that we tend to think
that the only footprints in this world are the ones we make. That’s simply not the case. This earth we trod holds the
footprints of those people we loved, and many, many more we never knew. Any
footsteps we leave behind simply add to the billions of footprints already there.
Any song we sing simply adds a little harmony to the great song being sung
since the beginning of time.
Think for a
moment about the scripture lesson today from the book of Revelation. Some
people get nervous about reading from this book. In fact, this book almost
didn’t make it into the Bible because it’s so different from the rest of the
New Testament. But the book of Revelation is simply a vision that one man named
John had about things to come and some things that were already beginning to
happen in his time. And part of this vision was read to us this morning from
chapter 21. The author has had a vision of a glorious God bringing heaven down
to earth. It’s described as the Holy
City, Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven. It’s a city with no more death or
mourning or crying or pain. Anybody want to live in a place like that? In that
city, God personally wipes away every single tear. The author calls it a “new
heaven and a new earth.” The highlight of this amazing vision jumps out from
verse 3: “Look! God’s dwelling place is now among the people, and he
will dwell with them.” Some people like to
think this vision foretells some future event, and that may be true. But I
think, more importantly, this is a vision of present reality.
·
God’s dwelling place is right here, right now!
·
God is busy bringing about the new city right here, right
now!
·
God wipes away our tears right here, right now!
·
God is working to eradicate death and mourning and
crying and pain right here, right now!
·
God calls each of us, every saint alive today, to join
God in making this vision come to fruition right here, right now!
And there’s more good news: we’re not alone. Remember the
footsteps?
We’re
not alone because working feverishly to accomplish this new Jerusalem, you and
I are joined by all the saints, from every time and every place—all the company
of heaven working together, co-creators with God, to establish this amazing new
city right here, right now! How exciting! How exciting to join with all of creation from every time
and every place to bring about a new reality! A new heaven and a new earth!
We walk in the footsteps of all
the saints from every time and every place, but this walking is no funeral
processional. No way! This is a more like a grand parade.
. .a joyous celebration. . .like a Mardi Gras parade. Can you see it? The dazzling colors, the radiant smiles, the brilliant costumes.
Can you hear it? The exuberant laughter, the raucous revelry,
the jazz band playing a rousing rendition of “When the Saints Go Marching In?”
And leading that band? Christ Jesus the Lord! The Alpha and the Omega. The beginning and the end. Lord, I want to be in that number! Let me in the band! Can you see it? Can you hear it? Can you taste it in the bread and in the wine as we celebrate Holy Communion with all the company of saints from every time and every place joining here with us? Lord, I want to be in that number. What about you, saint of God? Don’t you want to be in that number, right here, right now?