Sermon for May 10th 2020 - Hope in lockdown

Sermon for Sunday 10^th May 2020

Let the words of my mouth, and the meditations of my heart, be acceptable to you, my lord, my God and redeemer. Amen.

These are very strange, difficult days. And while I do have a message of hope and Good News and it can also be very easy to say all shall be well, and all shall be well, and all manner of things shall be well. And they will, be well. But I think its’s important to acknowledge what is happening, and especially, how we feel about it. We all know the facts so I won’t dwell on them, but we have all lost so much, plans, holidays, income, jobs, contact with family and friends and so it goes…

Then wherever there is loss, there is grief, and yes, we experience grief when we lose someone we love, but also when lose certainties in our lives, when the foundations which held us up crumble, whether it’s job security, the next holiday or the carefully planned diaries, losing these is painful. We can feel lost, numb and this can bring anxiety, stress and depression.

So let me just say, it’s okay to be angry, afraid, sad, tearful or anything else. We don’t have to pretend the new normal is okay, not if we don’t feel that way.

An answer is to talk, please don’t bottle up feelings and if it will help, please do give us a call.

I also quickly want to mention the old testament reading for today, which was Noah’s Ark in Genesis chapter 8, as the flood slowly subsided and 40 days since first glimpsing a mountain top, Noah sends out a raven and then a dove to look for dry land.

The story of the Ark changed God’s relationship with humanity, never again would he bring such a great destruction on the people, and he isn’t now. It’s interesting that the Ark was a place of lockdown, where freedom was restricted. That 40 days is part of the story, as was the 40 days Jesus spent in the wilderness, being tempted by the devil, and did you know, the word quarantine comes from the Italian, for forty, Quarenta, the time a ship would be held in port before a crew could disembark during the plague.

So today, the only certainty, is uncertainty.

Our Gospel though is one of certainty. Its one of comfort and reassurance. This Gospel is for us. We may live in a time of uncertainty, but so did Jesus, he had just washed the disciple’s feet, told them he would be betrayed and that they couldn’t follow where he was going, to the cross. They were facing massive uncertainty, and what was Jesus’ response? “Do not let your hearts be troubled. Believe in God, believe also in me.”

Jesus, he is the way, the truth and the life, at the same time, there isn’t a list of reasons for everything. God did not create this pandemic; we are not being punished. Our messy, broken world is just reminding us that creation is in charge, and it’s undeniable, in just a few months, wildlife had reasserted itself, the air is cleaner, the seas are clearer, it’s like the earth is beginning to take a deep breath after struggling to breathe for a long time.

So, no, the way isn’t what we thought it was going to be.  The way is demanding.  The way is precarious.  The way takes time.  But the invitation of this Gospel is still an invitation to confidence.  Not because we're experts at finding God, but because God has always and already found us.

“In my Father’s house there are many dwelling places,” Jesus tells his sorrowing disciples.  Meaning: God is roomy.  God is generous.  God is hospitable.  God can handle your doubts, your fears, and your questions.  And God’s offer of belonging extends far beyond the confines of this mortal life.  “I go and prepare a place for you,” Jesus says as he stands in the shadow of his own cross.  You have a place with me.  You have a place with God.  You have a place.

This is a Gospel for our time.  The story — your story, my story, our collective story of this precarious, overwhelming moment — will not end in death.  Though we might feel alone and frightened right now, the Way is open before us.  We know it.  We know Jesus, and because we know Jesus, we know God.  The Way will safely bear us home.  Do not let your hearts be troubled.  

And in the end, Noah and his family, did reach a safe shore, and God sealed his covenant, not to repeat such a tragedy again, with a bow in the sky, a rainbow, a sign of hope, and today not just hope, but a sign of thanks of deep hope and immense thanks.

Amen

Preached online on May 10th 2020

The Gospel    John 14.1-14

14‘Do not let your hearts be troubled. Believe in God, believe also in me. ²In my Father’s house there are many dwelling-places. If it were not so, would I have told you that I go to prepare a place for you? ³And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and will take you to myself, so that where I am, there you may be also. ⁴And you know the way to the place where I am going.’ ⁵Thomas said to him, ‘Lord, we do not know where you are going. How can we know the way?’ ⁶Jesus said to him, ‘I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me. ⁷If you know me, you will know my Father also. From now on you do know him and have seen him.’

8 Philip said to him, ‘Lord, show us the Father, and we will be satisfied.’ ⁹Jesus said to him, ‘Have I been with you all this time, Philip, and you still do not know me? Whoever has seen me has seen the Father. How can you say, “Show us the Father”? ¹⁰Do you not believe that I am in the Father and the Father is in me? The words that I say to you I do not speak on my own; but the Father who dwells in me does his works. ¹¹Believe me that I am in the Father and the Father is in me; but if you do not, then believe me because of the works themselves. ¹²Very truly, I tell you, the one who believes in me will also do the works that I do and, in fact, will do greater works than these, because I am going to the Father. ¹³I will do whatever you ask in my name, so that the Father may be glorified in the Son. ¹⁴If in my name you ask me for anything, I will do it.