RCL Year B (Proper 10) - July 12, 2009

The Rev'd Kenneth H. Saunders III
Christ Church
Cleveland, NC

RCL Year B (Proper 10) - July 12, 2009

2 Samuel 6:1-5, 12b-19

Psalm 24
Ephesians 1:3-14

Mark 6:14-29

When we pray the Lord’s Prayer and say “Thy will be done on Earth as it is in heaven” do we really mean it? Do we really mean for God’s WILL to be done? Or is it just some random prayer that we make? We say it, because we have always said it… but do we really really mean it?

If we look deeply into this week’s difficult and challenging lessons, we can see that they are about a clash… A clash of the will of the Kingdom’s of this world, and God’s divine will for us to have hope in Christ.

In our Old Testament lesson, David, the King of Israel was moving the Ark of the Covenant… The Ark that contained the laws given to Moses by the living God. This was the symbol of God’s divine presence among them, and David was moving it to the capital city. Now this was a grand procession with dancing and trumpets and castanets and cymbals. The scripture says that he was going from the house of Abinadab to the city of David, the Capital City.

What the portion of the lectionary reading left out, is that when they arrived at the threshing floor at a place called Nacon… probably the most level place that they had been… an oxen, who was pulling the cart, shook the cart and the ark began to fall. Uzzah, the son of Abinadab, was driving the cart and he reached out and touched the ark to steady it. Uzzah was immediately was struck down dead.

This scared David. And David feared God and was unwilling to bring the ark into the city of David, so he took the Ark to the house of Obed-edom, the Gittite. The scripture says that the ark of the Lord remained in the house of Obed-edom the Gittite for three months; And the Lord blessed Obed-edom and all his household. David got word of the blessing of Obed-edom’s household and decided to take the Ark back and bring it into the city of David.

God’s will was not convenient for David, and David was scared and upset. After this incident, King David feared God and didn’t trust God after he saw Uzzah die. David put God on hold, and didn’t continue on with the grand procession… David knew that God told the people to offer sacrifices, but the people thought the sacrifices were the most important thing. They would rather offer sacrifice than nurture a relationship with God. As long as they got that done, they thought that it didn’t matter so much what else they did. And people do the same thing today.

People think just as long as they confess their sins and do penance periodically that all will be well. There are even members of the church that act in a similar fashion. They think, as long as they come to church on Sunday and get their card punched, it doesn’t matter what else they do throughout the week… It was only after he heard that Obed-edoms house was blessed, and it was safe, that David continued on with his praise and sacrifices to God.

In our Gospel lesson, Herod follows his own will also. King Herod, (a puppet of the Roman Emperor), had John the Baptist arrested because he spoke out against Herod’s unlawful marriage to Herodias, his brother Phillip’s wife. But the scripture also says that while his was locked up, Herod protected John, because Herod thought John was a righteous and holy man. His wife, Herodias, on the other hand, feared John and wanted him dead.

King Herod’s stepdaughter (and niece) Salome, unnamed in the Gospel, was the daughter of Herodias, and danced for Herod on his birthday. King Herod was so pleased with her that he granted her whatever she asked for. He even said that she could even have ½ of his kingdom.

Salome didn’t know what to ask for, so she went to her mother, Herodias, – who seized the opportunity to ask for the head of John the Baptist. Salome went back and told Herod… and Herod was deeply grieved, but didn't want to appear weak, so he granted her wish.

He didn’t have the guts to say, NO, there is no reason to kill this man. For Herod, this was the beginning of the end… Trying not to appear weak, he followed his own will, and what he did what inevitably made him weak. This started the whole process that brought him down.

These stories are about the Kings of this world doing what they think suits them best, and the consequences of doing just that… However, they are also a stories about how these Kings used others to further their own agendas. David used the house of Obed-edom as a place to stash the Ark of the God he feared, until he found out that the house of Obed-edom was blessed. Then David wanted the Ark back to continue with the original plan and bring the Ark it into the city of David.

And then we have the tangled web of the tragedy in the Gospel story where Herod used Herodias to further his own political agenda. And Herodias using Salome to bring about the death of John the Baptist, and Salome using John to please her mother. But make no mistake about it, the blame lies not with Herodias or Salome but with Herod. Herod was certainly hesitant and deeply grieved about what he was asked to do, because he was protecting John and thought him to be holy and righteous, but instead of having to face embarrassment, he took an innocent life.

Are we not all like David sometimes, when we are fearful of what we don’t understand, and decide to do something that isn’t in the larger plan, because we consider it to be more safe? Then only to take the risk after we see what profit is to be gained!…

And Are we not all like Herod sometimes, when we do something to save face, and make a decision that profits us even thought it’s not right or fair to others? Or, as one of my colleagues suggested to me, perhaps one question to ask ourselves is, "whose head do we call for?"

St. Paul says to the Church in Ephesus, “In Christ we have obtained an inheritance, having been destined according to the purpose of him who accomplishes all things according to his counsel and will, so that we, who were first to set our hope on Christ, might live for the praise of his glory.”

We are believers in Jesus Christ, and in Christ we have been redeemed and sealed as God’s own people. We are members of Christ body, and subjects in God’s divine kingdom. When we pray, “Thy will be done,” God shows us and others the way to salvation in Christ Jesus. We use the good gifts that God has given us to build up God’s kingdom and to follow God’s will…, because it is God’s divine will is to gather all things in heaven and on Earth unto God.

But being faithful to God’s will for us is difficult… We struggle every day against the forces of this world that do not want us to live a holy and righteous life. But we need to be assured that what we are doing makes a difference not only in our lives, but in the lives of others.

So, like John, if we suffer or die for being faithful to God’s will, the kingdoms and principalities of this world do not have the last word. Our hope is in Jesus Christ, and our just reward will be eternal life with the God of our salvation. The important thing that we have to remember is… regardless of how difficult it is, we need to be faithful and follow God’s will for our life… Herod may have taken John's head, but he couldn't take his life.

Thank you to the Rev. Doris Westfall, the Rev. Don McCann, the Rev. Fred Clarkson, the Rev. Susan Bane, and the Rev. John Milholland, friends and colleagues, who helped me struggle with this difficult text.

RCL Year B (Proper 9) - July 5, 2009

The Rev'd Kenneth H. Saunders III

Christ Episcopal Church

Cleveland, NC

RCL Year B (Proper 9) - July 5, 2009

2 Samuel 5:1-5, 9-10

Psalm 48
2 Corinthians 12:2-10

Mark 6:1-13

Happy Birthday America!

This is the weekend in which we celebrate this country becoming a sovereign nation, happening some 233 years ago, on July 4, 1776. What is interesting is that the actual legal date of separation from British Rule in America was July 2, 1776 when the Continental Congress voted to accept the “resolution” of independence. After this resolution was debated and revised, it was writ in a declaration on July 4th.

I have talked a bit in our Christian Education class about the closeness and interrelatedness of the foundation of government in this country and the foundation of our beloved Episcopal Church in America; independent from, but now in full communion with the Church of England.

It was interesting, and a bit ironic, that on my trip to my parent’s home recently, I was able to attend “The Lost Colony” on Roanoke Island, in Manteo, NC. I don’t know if you have ever seen it, but it is an outdoor production reenacting the early English settlement chartered by Elizabeth I to Sir Walter Raleigh on Roanoke Island in 1584.

Anyhow… It was amazing to me how much “church” there was throughout the play, up to and including the priest, Fr. Martin, who accompanied them on the voyage, baptized Virginia Dare (who was the first Christian baptism in North America), and suffered with them through the hardships that led to their mysterious disappearance.

It must have been amazing to be that mission minded, and focused on bringing not only civilization to a unknown foreign land, but to also bring their church with them. Though the play didn’t cover it, we also know that the native American ally of the colony, Chief Manteo, was also baptized there with Virginia Dare.

What courageous missionaries they must have been for what they were willing to do in order to share their belief in Jesus Christ as Lord with a much different culture than theirs.

Today’s Gospel lesson is about mission and about Jesus words of urgent preparation to his disciples to go out into the nearby towns and villages and proclaim the good news to repent – that the kingdom of God has come near. But, In today’s Gospel lesson, things aren’t exactly what they seem to be; especially to those folks whom Jesus has come home to see.

Jesus has gone with his disciples to the synagogue in Galilee. And he begins to teach. Now, when Jesus lived in Galilee, the people knew him there as the carpenter, Son of Mary and Joseph, oldest brother of James, Joses, Judas, and Simon, and his sisters. But, Jesus has now returned as a wise prophet of the living God, and they reacted like we probably would (given the circumstances) “where did this guy get all this?” “who does he think he is?” “isn’t he the carpenter?”

They are all caught up in their perception of what they “expect” Jesus to be, rather than what he has come to do. He has come to prepare them and teach them how to make way for the kingdom of God. He has been on both sides of the Sea of Galilee, and in the middle, preaching, teaching and performing great miracles and acts of the living God. But, now he has returned home - home to the place where he was raised, to astound and possibly bewilder the crowd with his teaching, only for them not to believe in him. The scripture says that he was made powerless there, other than laying hands on a few sick people and healing them.

Then, after it seems that his own hometown has rejected him, he uses the incident as an opportunity to prepare his disciples for the work they must do to build up the body of believers. For their “mission” among the villages and towns. The “hard” work. The hard work that will not be received by everyone, especially in their hometowns… Hard work that will be the source of ridicule and laughter to some, and the way to salvation for others, but ALL must be reached.

It’s all Mission. Mission framed in the sense of urgency to Go Out! Don’t stop to pack a bunch of stuff! You don’t need anything for your journey… just a staff. You don’t need any money, or food, or even a change of clothes. You just basically need to put on your shoes, grab your staff and go!

Now, I don’t know about you, but when I go somewhere, there is usually some serious packing involved… at least an overnight bag, provisions for food or shelter, and definitely my computer and book-bag (I am not going anywhere without that!) After all, what would I do if I couldn’t check my e-mail? Kyle and I went camping last week for only 4 nights in the mountains and it seemed that we had our van loaded down.

So I had to think long and hard about what this passage was trying to tell us…

I felt that this was Jesus teaching us how mission is to be done… Not relying on ourselves, but trusting in God to provide what is needed for what must be done. Focus on God’s providence in the face of challenge and rejection. Mission done with urgency and complete trust in what God provides.

How come when it comes to modern mission in the church, we don’t follow that biblical example? We would rather complain about our scarce resources than trust in God’s providence and love for us. We focus on our sensitive nature and how we may feel when the negative rejections come, rather than rejoicing in the many blessings that God has provided for us. We would rather be sure of our own security than to risk it boldly spreading the Gospel.

Jesus sent them out, and gave them instructions, to spread a message of repentance to everyone, knowing that some will refuse them and some will listen. The scripture tells us that they went out and casted out demons and anointed many with oil and cured them.

Jesus wants no less from us…

Jesus wants us to be bold. Bold and daring to be the church in the world. Bold enough to proclaim that the kingdom of God has come near, and is hear with us in the living body of Christ, the church. The Church… the community where we worship, engage in dialogue, learn and challenge each other. The community where we hold each other up, support each other, and reach out into the world around us bringing us all closer to the kingdom of God.

We can learn a lot from our history…

The history of this country is ingrained and entrenched with the missionary efforts of those Christians, both lay and ordained, that have gone on before us, spreading and building up the kingdom of God as they went.

We are here today in this Christian Community because the Society for the Propagation of the Gospel, (an English Missionary Society), saw fit to bring the church to the western part of North Carolina in 1754. And in 1821, our Community became part of the newly formed diocese of North Carolina that reached from the coast to where we are today.

We share that wonderful legacy of foundation and mission, and we have the responsibility to continue to build up the kingdom of God right here in Rowan County. And we have the opportunity each and every day…

Every time we walk down the street, or see our neighbor in the yard, or talk to a friend in the grocery store; we have the opportunity to share with them the terrific and life giving presence that we know in our lives, because of our relationship with Jesus Christ. And we have an opportunity to ask them to be a part of that fellowship in mission and come and worship with us.

Not forcing them or scaring them into believing, but inviting them to be a part of us and nurturing their souls with what we have to offer.

We can only imagine the hardships that the first missionaries in this area faced, but they trusted that God’s provision and grace would give them exactly what they would need at the time that they would need it. As a result, Christ Church, this very church, when it was admitted to the diocese as a parish had on record some 250 families and was the second largest parish in the diocese.

Our forbearers knew something about mission and providence! They may have not known where their next meal was coming from, but they built this simple beautiful worship space in 1827 out of locally harvested heart pine.

Since its missionary inception, this church has survived 250 years of wars, suppression, depression, economic calamity, and even ritual and liturgical change. And we keep going. We will continue to be formed, informed, and transformed by the living presence of Jesus Christ in our lives, as we celebrate Him and worship Him.

Bishop Curry challenged us in this diocese to vision itself as a missionary diocese, a re-creation, something he called “a new Church.” Our challenge is to go forth from this place envisioning that “new church,” using that Biblical lesson of urgency and providence, trusting that God will be there with us as we reach out to others and invite them to become part of us, thriving and vital, focused and engaging… A steadiness in this unsteady and ever changing world around us.

We are each responsible, we each are responsible for our own faithfulness. We are not responsible for the response we may receive when we offer our ministries in Christ’s name, but we are each only responsible for being faithful stewards ourselves… responsible for our own faithfulness to what we are doing.

The only thing that we are assured of. Our only sure and certain hope is in the life, death and resurrection of our Lord Jesus Christ. It is with that assurance, and only with that assurance, that we can go out and proclaim the Gospel in this world both boldly and faithfully.

RCL Year B (Easter 5) - May 10, 2009

The Rev'd Kenneth H. Saunders III

Christ Episcopal Church

Cleveland, NC

RCL Year B (Easter 5) - May 10, 2009

Acts 8:26-40

Psalm 22:24-30

1 John 4:7-21

John 15:1-8

One of the things that I have noticed while living in Cleveland is that there are many talented gardeners… Growing everything from crops to personal gardens of flowers and vegetables, folks from Cleveland know something about planting something in the ground and tending to it, and making it grow and bear fruit. The ground here must be good for it. Since we have been living here, Kelly and I have taken up planting roses again.

So, for a gardening congregation, we know something about vines and branches. I know that when you prune roses, you need to cut the stem back to where you see new growth in order to let the branch take its course, uninhibited by the old growth that has bloomed.

At first it seems as if the bush is smaller, but once the new growth is given room and allowed to flourish, it takes off and grows… It grows into a strong bright brilliant bush, producing more beautiful blooms and buds than it did previously… but it is always a product of its strong root and stalk. For a rose, the stems and the new growth receive its nourishment from the stalk, it cannot live independently. If it is cut, separated from the stalk, it has no life in it, and it will wither and die.

In our gospel lesson today, Jesus uses a common metaphor (the vineyard) from the 5th Chapter of Isaiah – one that his disciples would recognize… It was a description of Israel’s relationship to God – and He used it in order to describe the relationship between the disciples and Himself.

The fifth chapter of Isaiah starts out...
I will sing a song for the Lord.
He is the one I love.
It's a song about his vineyard Israel.
The one I love had a vineyard.
It was on a hillside that had rich soil.
He dug up the soil and removed its stones.
He planted the very best vines in it.
He built a lookout tower there.
He also cut out a winepress for it.
Then he kept looking for a crop of good grapes.
But the vineyard produced only bad fruit.

The prophet tells of a people, cared for, given the best that they could get, provided for in every aspect, yet non-productive – producing bad fruit (or in some translations – wild grapes). He goes on to tell of the demise of God’s chosen people that lived there life apart from the care and comfort of the vine grower.

Jesus latches onto a metaphor that the people knew, and explains that He (Jesus) is the true vine. He is the part of vine that provides the life and sustenance for the branches (his followers.) And, as God (the Vinegrower) sees that good fruit is being produced, nourished by life in the vine, he tends the vine and prunes it, causing it to provide even more good fruit.
I don’t know how many of you folks have ever been to the vine arbor at the Biltmore house in Asheville… There is a long walkway there with a great trellis over it, where the grape vine grows up and over, almost creating a tunnel. From the outside, it just looks like a giant green tube, full and rich. However, when you go in, walking down the walkway in the arbor, you can see all the beautiful grapes hanging down, good fruit, plump and rich, ready for the picking.

I get that image in my head when I hear this passage. In that situation, we cannot see the fruit unless we are in the arbor. Being down under covered by this wonderful vine dwelling in it – protected, almost as if we were in a cocoon – a cocoon in where we are formed and transformed to be spiritually awakened as a new person in Jesus Christ.

Jesus says, “abide in me as I abide in you.” He reminds us that we cannot bear good fruit by ourselves; we must be an active part of the vine, connected to it so that we can be nourished and tended to… We cannot just grow anywhere we want to… we follow the trellis that is put in place by God, the Vinegrower.

As good a gardeners as we are, we must remember that we are not the vinegrower – God is the vinegrower… Jesus refers to us as the branches…

As his followers, we are branches of Him, the one true vine, getting everything we need from God (the Vinegrower) and being nourished by Jesus (the vine) as we grow and bear good fruit… if we are cut off, or if we cut ourselves off we start to wither and die.

However, if we abide in Jesus, truly abide (live in, dwell with), not just for an hour on Sunday morning, but being connected to every minute of every hour of every day… We will bear much good fruit…

And how do we get to be a branch of that one true vine? How do we get to participate and take part in the life that bears the good fruit? Baptism is how… That is why we hear a the baptism story from Acts this morning too…

We become attached to the vine at baptism, and vow to live a life letting the trellis of the arbor that the vinegrower has put into place support us and sustain us, and letting the vine nourish us…

What is interesting is that the story of Philip baptizing the eunuch from Ethiopia, is that it’s a story of a seeker of the truth, trying to find a religion that would accept him. His body had been mutilated and disfigured.

And Though he could not become a Jew because of his mutilation, he had come to Jerusalem anyway as a seeker, to worship the God of Israel… and he was reading from the prophet Isaiah. Philip came upon him and revealed the scriptures meaning to him, and proclaimed to him the Good News of God in the person of Jesus Christ.

The Ethiopian eunuch was drawn to be connected and share fully in this life that Philip spoke about, but was still afraid that because of his disfigurement, he wouldn’t be able to.
So, when they came upon some water, the eunuch exclaimed, “Look here is water, what is to prevent me from being baptized.” And Philip, knowing that through Christ, all creation is made a new, nothing would prevent him from being baptized and participating in the community of faith, Philip baptized him – connecting him to the vine that we are all a part of.

In our Christian Education class on Sunday mornings, we are looking at how we live and how we make moral and ethical decisions in light of the resurrection of Our Lord Jesus Christ… How we might live in the resurrection, and recognize the good fruit that is being produced around us and through us…

Life in the resurrection is abiding in God (the vinegrower), letting Jesus (our true vine nourish us and sustain us for our journey of faith) and living out that faith in participation with a community that also nourishes us and sustains us (among other branches that bear that good fruit). This is good news! These are all comforting and encouraging words to hear! But is that all?

So often this seems to be the main just of this lesson, but there’s always more to it than that. If we stop short with these comforting words, we miss the entire message. Life in the resurrection, being branches that bear good fruit requires responsibility and action and it has consequences.

We must not forget that this passage also includes the message of pruning, and being thrown away, and withering – of being thrown into the fire and burned, if we fail to produce “good fruit.” It is the part of this lesson that we don’t often hear, and it is sobering…

The Gospel message is clear, and when we read it closely, in its entirety, we realize that Jesus expects something from each of us. Each of us are connected though the awesome gift of God’s grace in our baptism, accepting us a living members of the body of Christ.

But our responsibility of being connected to this vine, is to be a branch that bears much good fruit, doing the work that Jesus wants us to do… using our resources to build up the kingdom of God, loving one another, and focusing our thoughts and our efforts on learning to be better disciples… All of this means that we are called and expected to answer our Lord’s love with action!

The action of fruit bearing, fruit bearing that is rooted in our baptism and it is sealed with the promise of “I will, with God’s help.” How then shall we live? Maybe the answer to that question is right in front of us. Jesus said, “Abide in me as I abide in you.” This doesn’t mean settle down and relax, it means get busy!

RCL Year B (Easter 4) - May 3, 2009

The Rev'd Kenneth H. Saunders III

Christ Episcopal Church

Cleveland, NC

RCL Year B (Easter 4) - May 3, 2009

Acts 4:5-12

Psalm 23

1 John 3:16-24

John 10:11-18

Today we get to leave the post resurrection appearances of Jesus for a minute… You know, those accounts of Jesus appearing to his disciples after the resurrection, showing himself to his disciples in the breaking of the bread, and revealing himself as he opens the scripture to them and eats with them.

Today we get to focus on something different… In today’s gospel reading, here in the middle of our celebration of the resurrection of Jesus, we learn more about who Jesus is.

But, like so many other bible references, the images today are strange to us and not easy to understand. Even, right here in our rural community of Cleveland, NC, we don’t quite understand why Jesus refers to himself as “The Good Shepherd.”

Jesus says that He is “The Good Shepherd,” The model shepherd that lays down his life for the sheep. I don’t know about you, but I don’t know of any “sheep ranches” in Cleveland, NC.

Driving around Cleveland, I see lots of cows, and bulls… and even yesterday I was greeted by Larry the goat, but no sheep. However, the folks that Jesus was talking to understood what a good shepherd was, and how important their function was to the raising of sheep.

Jesus uses the image of shepherd as a metaphor to explain who he is… By saying that he is the “Good Shepherd,” Jesus says that he is the faithful leader, guardian, protector, healer, and loving guide of us, his sheep.

Over the years, it seems like we have romanticized the image of shepherd a bit… When we think of “shepherd,” we think more of a young man (maybe in the Christmas play) with a some kind of towel on his head, standing out in the field with a crooked pole watching over a group of animals that are grazing in the grass.

But, people who know what shepherds are, know they are much more than that. Shepherd were tough and courageous, a bit rough around the edges, on the fringes of refined society… they are the “other” folks, who are not always accepted… More like the kind of people that are considered the “outcasts of society” – the ones that Jesus makes it a point to be with, eat with, and teach.

And Jesus says, “I am the Good Shepherd, I know my own, and my own know me.” We are Jesus’ own. We are the sheep of his pasture… wait a minute – yes – I said sheep.

We are sheep. But don’t misunderstand Jesus’ metaphor… He is not calling us simple mindless animals that eat grass all day and stand around and go baaaa… There is a distinct difference between sheep and any other pasture animal.

Sheep are interesting communal creatures that will stay huddled together in a flock. Unlike cattle that can be rounded up and herded together from behind and pushed in a direction, sheep need to be led from the front…

I understand that if you try to herd them and prod and push sheep from behind to get them to go anywhere, then they will scurry around and get behind the shepherd. Sheep need to be led… Led by the Good Shepherd.

And sheep are not dumb animals. They know their shepherd, and they will listen to their shepherd’s voice as he calls them by name. You could have 3 or 4 different flocks together, all grazing on the same pasture, comingled, and when the shepherd calls them, they will follow his voice… and go where he leads them, because they trust the Good Shepherd to lead them to good pasture, and keep them safe from danger.

But there are many voices vying for the sheep’s attention. Voices that try to endanger us, the sheep. There are voices of this world today that want to lead us sheep astray. Voices like self reliance, self security, greed, and idolatry.

Voices that try to make us think that we don’t need each other… voices of this world that try to break up the harmony of our flock and make us start judging one another.

Being timid animals, sheep are vulnerable and not able to protect themselves, they need the shepherd’s protection… Protection from wolves, and other predators that may be after them.

But if the sheep are as true to the shepherd, as the Good Shepherd Jesus is to the sheep, then they will listen to the Shepherd and follow where he leads, and He will look after them.

But often, at times, we aren’t good sheep. We are stubborn and we don’t go where the Good Shepherd leads. We like to think that we have it all figured out ourselves, and we like to separate ourselves from the other sheep that aren’t like us, rather than stay with the one flock, under control of the one true Good Shepherd.

There are many who are out there that try to be the shepherd and lead the sheep where they think they need to go. Leading them to places that aren’t good for the sheep… Places of danger… There are even ministers out there who think that they are shepherds, trying to scare the sheep into staying with a flock… Telling them that they are the only ones who know the way to the greener pastures.

As your priest, I will be the first to tell you that I am NOT a shepherd, I will never claim to be a shepherd – though some of you have been taught that a minister is some sort of shepherd… I don’t think that it is the proper representation… it shouldn’t work like that.

I am more of a sheep among the sheep of God, always trying to point the way to and show the other sheep who the One true “Good Shepherd” is. It is important that I always follow the Good Shepherd too, following where the Good Shepherd leads.

I heard someone say once that the priest is more of a sheep dog, helping the Good Shepherd keep the sheep in line, and helping protect the sheep against the evil wolves of this world… but even the sheep dog follows where the “Good Shepherd” leads.

In the passage, Jesus is the only One True Good Shepherd, protecting, guiding, loving and caring for the sheep that are His - us. Never forsaking us, always faithful to us, nourishing us, giving us hope, and saving us from ourselves.

Jesus isn’t any ordinary shepherd, he is the “model shepherd” (the “Good Shepherd”) that embodies strength, power, sympathy, kindness, and mercy.

Jesus uses a figure of speech that the people of the ancient world in the middle east would understand. With the shepherd / sheep imagery, he tried to teach them how to live in right relationship with Him and with each other.

We are gathered here today 2000 years later, learning from this passage that we are his people and the sheep of his pasture… Let us seek His and only His guidance and protection as we dare to follow where He leads.

RCL Year B (Easter 2) - April 19, 2009

The Rev'd Kenneth H. Saunders III
Christ Episcopal Church
Cleveland, NC

RCL Year B (Easter 2) - April 19, 2009

Acts 4:32-35
Psalm 133
1 John 1:1-2:2
John 20:19-31

We live in a time where it is completely normal and desirable to be absolutely sure of everything. In our culture and our world, it is hard to understand how we can actually believe in something without “proof!” In our time, there are people out there every second of every day trying to gather “proof.” “Proof” through the “facts” that they can find. “Proof” before they believe in ANYTHING.

Some folks act like those Crime Scene Investigators, that we see on the popular television shows, as they gather evidence needed to solve a crime. It seems that they are out there to “prove” or “disprove” the existence of everything. Like forcing the pieces to fit in some gigantic puzzle.

I will admit - when I was in High School, one of my favorite courses was Geometry. This is where I actually got to “prove” things like, a triangle was not a square, because it met a certain criteria. We can “prove” so much with our God-given minds – Why not prove God? Why not prove Jesus? Wouldn’t that make our lives much easier… to know all of the answers to all of the questions??? Or would it??

This notion of “proof” that plagues our culture has even trickled down to a young person I met recently. You have probably met someone like him. A bright sharply dressed young man “on fire” to do the work of the Lord Jesus in the world. Knowing that I was a priest (the outfit made it obvious), he proceeded to come up to me and ask me, “are you saved?” I thought he was just messing with me, but he seemed very serious, and very convicted. So, instead of giving him my usual stupid “sarcastic” reply, “saved from what?” I looked him in the eye with confidence and said, “yes, as a matter of fact, I am...”

Then he his other question came. “How do you know?” “Prove it!” This completely blew me away. This guy didn’t know me at all and he wanted me to “prove” to him that I knew something about salvation and forgiveness. The funny part about this is that I could have engaged him in a riveting theological discussion about the economic trinity and God’s revelation to God’s people by God’s work throughout salvation history. Did he forget that I went to seminary for three years, and I am an educated priest? But I didn’t do all that. I just stood there mesmerized.

I think that the most frustrating thing for me was this young man was completely “certain” that I should somehow be able to “prove it!” I thought to myself, where was the faith in that? Where are the questions? Where is the mystery?

I have been taught through my life that the opposite of faith is not doubt, it’s certainty. That in order to have faith, one must be willing to live with some mystery. Now. I guess that I could have gone out and started a quest to find archeological “proof” of the historic Jesus, like so many folks have before me. And I could have used my inquisitive mind to act like one of those Crime Scene Investigator and search for the facts to somehow prove my faith. But would that actually help me believe?

I would like to suggest that “maybe” in our time, it is harder for us to take things on faith because we are so incredibly good at finding that “tangible” or at least the “scientific” proof for so many things. So much to the point that it is extremely sad that when science offers us something different than what we have believed for centuries. Our beliefs are so based on what we think are facts that they are somehow shattered.

I have heard some people argue that “science says it has proven that humans have evolved from a lower life form. Then you hear the other side, but, I am a Christian, therefore, I can’t believe that – it contradicts what I read in the Bible.”

Galileo Galilei – a devout Christian, and excellent theologian – a man considered to be the father of modern physics had an argument with the Church because he introduced the idea of a Solar system in 1609 – which is a “heliocentric” or “sun-centered” system that the “planets” revolved around.

Then, the Church’s interpretation of the bible supported an Earth centered universe. The Church immediately convicted him of heresy and sentenced him to life in prison in a tower. But now, it has been “proven” and it is readily accepted, and now, we interpret the context of scripture much differently.

I am here to tell you this morning that I don't believe the opposite of belief is doubt. So, if what I believe is based on faith, and the opposite of faith is certainty, where does that put doubt? Just because you believe, doesn’t mean you can’t doubt. I believe that doubt is related to belief and engaged in a type of wrestling back and forth, struggling with the questions of faith.

For me, I think that I would rather spend time with someone who really wrestles with the questions, than someone who says they are a true believer, and thinks that they have all the answers, but their life doesn't reflect the faith they talk about.

Someone who really wrestles with the questions has a lot more in common with the apostles, and a lot more in common with you and with me in our tradition of scripture, tradition, and reason.

Doubt is not a bad thing. Doubt can lead us to faith.

In the Gospel lesson this morning, Thomas didn't get to see the resurrected Jesus at first. He didn't have the faith that the other disciples did after they saw Jesus because Thomas was somewhere else.

Regardless of how much the disciples that were gathered in that upper room testified to Thomas that they had seen the risen Christ. Thomas still had his reservations. He said, “Unless I see the mark of the nails in his hands, and put my finger in the mark of the nails and my hand in his side, I WILL NOT BELIEVE!”

It is important for us to notice in the story that Thomas is engaged in his doubts. He came forth, he asked to be able to see. he wanted to believe!

A week later the risen Jesus appears to them again. This time Thomas is with them! Jesus tells Thomas, “Put your finger here and see my hands, reach out your hand and put it in my side. Do not doubt but believe!”

And don't we want to believe like that? Of Course We Do!

Especially on those days when the story of the resurrection seems a bit beyond our grasp. We want to believe, we want to come forth, we want to ask to be able to see the wounds, and we want to invest our lives and our souls in something tangible. We want to be able the make the proclamation that Thomas made, “My Lord and My God!”

Because what happened to Thomas works for us. We are a society that needs that kind of “proof.” Then Jesus throws a twist in Thomas’ new found faith... faith that is based on “tangible” evidence! Jesus says, “Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have come to believe.”

We have not seen, but yet we believe. We may doubt sometimes, but we are here and we believe!

For centuries, this Sunday (The Second Sunday of Easter) has been called “Low Sunday.” This is done mainly to point out that sharp contrast between this Sunday and all of the “High Holy Day” festivities of Easter. In fact, I think that the folks who go to church on the Sunday after Easter understand this lesson more than anyone else.

You are here because you understand that the resurrection of Jesus and Easter is not just some pleasant springtime tradition to observe with Bunny ears, colored eggs, marshmallow chicks, and candy for the children. You are here because the resurrected Christ has invited you to share a meal, exercise your faith and be nourished and you have come back for this meal again today.

There is the faith!

You're acting out your beliefs. You're acting out your faith that has been handed down through those who have been willing to take action and proclaim the resurrection.

We are all called as Christians to live into our faith. The action of living into our faith strengthens our faith and helps diminish our doubts. Faith is not some obscure mental act. It is not something we have to fabricate in our heads. It is the state of “being” possessed by the love of God. We act on it by telling others, so that they, too, can enter that state of “being” possessed by the love of God.

This is what I believe! Doubt is not a bad thing…

Do you believe that Jesus is the Christ? Do you believe that he rose from the dead? Do you believe in life everlasting?

Let US all be able to proclaim, My Lord and My God! So that we can Gracefully accept our gift of the resurrection of Christ. And we can Gracefully accept our gift of life everlasting with our God. And when we are like the beloved Apostle, St. Thomas, and are filled with doubts, let us ask for God to fill us with the power that we need to profess the faith. So that, while we are strengthening our own faith, we are also passing it on.