March
8, 2020
Second
Sunday in Lent
Genesis
12:1-4a
Psalm
121
Romans
4:1-5,13-17
John
3:1-17
Please pray with me,
May the words of my mouth and the
meditations of all of our hearts be acceptable in your sight, O God, our rock,
our strength and our redeemer.
Amen.
We are back in the gospel of
John…the one that begins with the word became flesh and lived among us and the
light shines in the darkness and the darkness cannot overcome it. It is from this darkness that Nicodemus
approaches Jesus in our gospel lesson today.
I have heard this gospel described as a one act play, where Jesus sits
center stage, in the spotlight, even radiating the light that throughout the
Gospel, people enter into the light with Jesus, and exit back into
darkness.
Nicodemus comes into Jesus’
presence to question his presence, his mission, his ministry, the reason God
sent him into the world, and Jesus responds with a message that confuses
Nicodemus and confounds many of us today.
That because God loved the world so greatly that God sent the only
begotten Son into the world, so that everyone who believes in him may have
eternal life. God did not send the Son
into the world, that he might condemn or judge the world, but that the world
might be saved through him.
Isn’t that the message we all
need to hear?
That God didn’t send Jesus into
the world to condemn the world, but rather to save the world.
We, well at least me, I need to
hear this message…that we aren’t enough and like Nicodemus, we don’t understand
this great love of God, yet it encompasses us ALL in forgiveness, grace and love. It calls us into the light – a place we feel uncomfortable
- uncomfortable you say? Didn’t you
begin the sermon by saying that Jesus was the light? Wouldn’t we want to be in the light?
Yes, I dare say we do want to be
in the light.
Yet it can be a place that is
uncomfortable.
Let me explain. When we step into
the light, our whole selves are revealed.
Sometimes we cling to darkness, because we can hide the parts of
ourselves we do not like, or do not want others to see. It’s easier to hide in the dark, just ask any
youth that has played flashlight tag in the basement…you want the lights on to
find a good spot, but you want them off when someone is trying to find
you.
But even in our unworthiness, we
are called into the light, to live, to love and to serve.
But in the light we see our imperfections,
our faults, our foibles, or more importantly we are able to see and notice and
point out the imperfections of others.
Am I right? It is far too easy to
spot, call out or make mention of the mistakes and faults of others.
Why? Because it takes the eyes off of us…and puts
the attention on someone else.
Who doesn’t like to redirect the
attention? Especially when the attention
is on your own faults…I do it, too, friends.
Ugh, and I get frustrated every time it happens.
So here we have Nicodemus, in the
light, in the spotlight, for all of us to see…and when he is there, he is mired
in misunderstanding. He is in the
presence of Jesus – the word become flesh – and he doesn’t get it. He is unable to see the savior in his midst
and so he exits the spotlight, he leaves the light, enters back into the
darkness on not just the night, but the darkness that is his questions,
misunderstandings, and struggle to understand who this Jesus is.
I want to shout at Nicodemus, no
don’t leave…come back…it’s Jesus…the light who has come into the world, not to
condemn the world, but rather that the world may be saved through him.
But I’m shouting into the
darkness.
I’m shouting into my own
darkness.
Because just like Nicodemus, I
have a really hard time wrapping my mind around a God who loves the whole world
so much that in this way…through the life, death and resurrection of the only
Son will show the world this great love.
I can’t save the world, but if I
could, I’m not so sure I would save it the way God does….
I’m still wrapping my mind around
this amazing love and grace in our world today.
In the season of Lent, I’m
reading the Chronicles of Narnia. My dad
read The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe aloud to me as a kid, and I’ve
seen the old PBS production and the newer Disney version of it, but I’ve never
read all seven of the books.
As I read The Lion, The Witch
and The Wardrobe, the most familiar story to me, I disliked the character
Edmund from the beginning. He is the one
(spoiler alert) who is the big jerk in the story. He toys with his sister Lucy’s emotions by
not believing her experience in Narnia, he makes fun of her, even after having
been to Narnia himself, and then he desserts his siblings to side with the
White Witch.
His faults are ever before
him.
And then Edmund is rescued by
Aslan's cohort and brought back into the fold.
That’s the part I want to share
right now…
“When the other children woke up
the next morning (the had been sleeping on piles of cushions in the pavilion)
the first thing they heard – from Mrs. Beaver – was that their brother had been
rescued and brought back into camp late last night; and was at that moment with
Aslan. As soon as they had breakfasted
they all went out, and there they saw Aslan and Edmund walking together in the
dewy grass, apart from the rest of the court.
There is no need to tell you (and
no one ever heard) what Aslan was saying but it was a conversation which Edmund
never forgot. As the others drew nearer
Aslan turned to meet them bringing Edmund with him. ‘Here is your brother,’ he
said ‘and – there is no need to talk to him about what is past.’” (The Lion,
The Witch and the Wardrobe, C.S. Lewis, p. 135-136)
Here is your brother, and – there
is no need to talk to him about what is past.
And when Aslan speaks, no one
dares question…
But the forgiveness is there…it
is gifted to Edmund because of Aslan’s great love.
That my friends, is the wideness
in God’s mercy. God’s mercy flows wider
than we could possibly imagine and that is the joy and wonder found in Jesus
Christ.
And each time we question,
struggle, wonder, or try to figure our why and where God’s mercy reaches then
we’ve missed the point – and we’re right there with Nicodemus.
But in those moments, in those
spaces where God’s grace envelopes us and we are washed in forgiveness and
grace and it breaks open our hearts to forgive and love others…well, that’s
what it’s like living in the light.
That’s the holy moment of being washed in God’s light and love and face
and letting it reveal to others and to ourselves that we are God’s beloved –
chosen, called, claimed and sent to share this message in all that we say and
do.
Come, walk in the light…
Love in the light.
Live in the light…
And now may the peace, which
surpasses all understanding, keep our hearts and minds in Christ Jesus, and let
all God’s people say, amen.
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