“A Triune Work in Progress”

John 16:12-15

Pastor Tom Johnson, May 26, 2013

“I still have many things to say to you,” Jesus tells his disciples. “There is so much I want to tell you—so much I want to share with you.” I’m sure you know the feeling—wanting to unload a truck-load of information on someone. Maybe you went on vacation, have come back, and now can’t wait to share the sights, smells, tastes, stories, and experiences you had. Or you just discovered some exciting information. You want to be the first to tell your friends and family. You take delight in seeing the look of surprise on the faces who receive the good news. Sometimes what we want to share cannot be summed up in sound bytes. It is too rich and too profound. So we invite our friend to lunch, coffee, a long walk, or drive. We plan ahead, make an appointment, and take our time.

So it is with Jesus. “I still have many things to say to you but you cannot bear them now,” he says. “You can only handle so much. So, over the course of time, the Spirit of Truth will guide you into the fullness of the Gospel,” he says. “And what the Holy Spirit reveals is exactly what is on my heart and the heart of the Father. It will bring me joy and glory,” he says, “because he will deliver my gifts and assure you of my grace. You cannot bear what I want to say to you now,” says our Lord. In the weakness of our humanity, we can only take in so much truth at a time.

That is why, when we talk about God, we use the word “mystery.” A mystery in the Bible is not something that is hidden forever—but revealed over time. “For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, declares the Lord. For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts” (Isa 55:8-9). We use words like “holy” to describe God because he is uncommon, other, and transcends creation. Yes, it is true that the word “Trinity” is nowhere found in the Bible. But no human language can adequately reveal the true nature of God who is, God who is One—God who is Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. Words cannot bear the heavy weight of that truth. All our singing, preaching, and theologizing is but a mere shadow of the bright truth of God. Even in eternity, the archangels cover their eyes and dare not look straight into the face of the resurrected Christ when they cry “Holy, Holy, Holy” (Isa 6:3; Rev 4:8).

And so the Father and Son have sent the Holy Spirit. It is out of a compassion, empathy, and love that Jesus doesn’t just unload all that he wants to say at once. He reveals the patience of the Triune God by giving us space and time. And yet, he does give us a quick peek into the mystery of God. God the Father loves his creation. God the Son gives himself for us. God the Holy Spirit delivers his gifts and assures us of his love. They all work together in perfect harmony as One. And they all work for us in various ways according to their Person. The Trinity is a work in progress on our behalf.

What a difference our view of God and of ourselves would be if we kept this in the forefront of our minds—that we are God’s work in progress. We cannot bear all the things God wants to tell us at once.  And rather than beat ourselves up, demand perfection of ourselves, or expect immediate results, we can also give ourselves and one another space and time since the Holy Spirit is patient and wise. He comes to lead, counsel, teach, and give his gifts. Jesus describes the inner working of the Trinity to reveal the outward experience of the believer. And that path is one that leads to acceptance, growth, and eternal life. What a difference it makes in how we view one another—we are all God’s work in progress. It may sound condescending, but Jesus certainly does not mean it that way: “You cannot bear what I want to say to you now.” Because, unlike Jesus the eternal Son of God, we are all in this growth thing together. We have all the more reason to be patient with one another as Jesus is patient with us. Like him, we can look to the future with Triune optimism. We can look ahead to our Christian journey with joyful expectation. Jesus promises that the Holy Spirit will take what is the Father’s and what is the Son’s and deliver it to us over time.

What a wonderful way to look at our worship, Bible studies, and personal prayers. The Holy Spirit is weekly, daily, and hourly revealing the mystery of God’s love. We are on a journey of discovery with the Holy Spirit as our guide.

“Holy, holy, holy! Though the darkness hide Thee,Though the eye of sinful man Thy glory may not see, Only Thou art holy; there is none beside Thee, Perfect in pow’r, in love, and purity”

(“Holy, Holy, Holy,” LSB 507 v.3).

Abba! Father!

Romans 8:14-17

Pastor Tom Johnson, May 19, 2013

50 years ago, MIT linguistics professor Noam Chomsky rocked the academic world with his theory of Universal Grammar. He argued that all human beings are born with an innate ability and fluency in the structure and rules language. Language is hardwired into the human brain from birth. This means that children do not learn language as they grow up. They acquire a particular language (or languages) in their environment. In other words, they modify their already existing language ability to reflect the languages they learn.

 And today, on the day of Pentecost, the day that we celebrate human language from all over the world as evidence of the Holy Spirit at work in his Church, Paul brings us to the very core of this universal language: baby talk. “When we cry, ‘Abba! Father!’” Paul writes, “it is that very Spirit bearing witness with our spirit that we are children of God.” There is a universal truth in the particular Hebrew babble word “Abba!” that will encourage and lift our hearts up!

In my family, we called my Grandmother Johnson, “Dodo.” I didn’t think this was strange at all as a young child. It was surprisingly late in life that I noticed that not all grandchildren called their father’s mother “Dodo.” I even learned that a dodo is an extinct species of a flightless bird. As a teenager, I finally had enough courage to ask Dodo how she got her name. She told me her nephews and nieces could never pronounce her real name, Dorothy. Try as they might to speak that rich string of consonants and vowels, these little ones could not say, “Aunt Dorothy.” In their feeble attempt to articulate her name, it came out as “Dodo.” And rather than despise their grotesque inarticulateness or take offense at such a perversion of her name, she embraced it. And, it stuck. “Dodo.” It warmed her heart to hear these little ones mispronounce her name for more than half of a century until her homecoming with God.

As a Hebrew child, Paul remembers his own cradle talk—how he would address his own father. The Hebrew word for father is “Av.” Ending a word in consonant is difficult for children. The bottom lip to the upper teeth is even more challenging. And so Paul, along with countless other Hebrew babes, changed the labiodental consonant “v” for the far easier bilabial bottom lip to upper lip “b” and added the vowel following for easier more flowing articulation: “Abba.” And rather than despise this widespread Hebrew dialect among toddlers, their fathers’ hearts melted as their children put their names on their lips. Parents love it when their children call for them—even in their babbling tongues.

But how sad it is when we live our lives denying God this pleasure. God wants hear us babble his holy Name! Maybe we make the mistake thinking God will hear us by our many words as Jesus warns in his Sermon on the Mount. Perhaps we are like Moses who thought he was of no use to God because of his speech impediment and even owed God an apology. “Oh, my Lord,” he stutters, “I am not eloquent, either in the past or since you have spoken to your servant, but I am slow of speech and of tongue” (Exod 4:10). The Apostle Paul himself played down his oratory skills. “…when I came to you” Paul writes, “[I] did not come proclaiming to you the testimony of God with lofty speech [in eloquence] or wisdom. For I decided to know nothing among you except Jesus Christ and him crucified” (1 Cor 2:1,2). Instead, Paul embraced the simplicity and beauty of the good news of Jesus. And rather than embark on a never-ending journey for perfection that never comes, he simply sputtered out the love of God that he has for all creatures and creation that is so clear, even a child can understand.
 

Or maybe we should say, “…what a child better understands.” What is it that a child doing when they say, “Abba,” “dada,” “papa,” “tata,” “mama,” “baba,” or “dodo”? They aren’t thinking about their theological and linguistic prowess at all. It doesn’t matter! What matters is that they are looking for love, acceptance, reassurance, and compassion from the correct source. And that is the beauty of this truth: that God loves even the inarticulate babbling of his Name. He is not a supreme grammarian! He is our heavenly Papa. He is not disgusted by our spiritual speech impediments. He takes delight in our cradle tongues because they are calling upon him in times of trouble. What matters is not our well-crafted words, poetic cadence, or precise theological formulations. What matters is that we are free to pray to God and look to him with confidence that he loves us, accepts us, and even likes us. Scripture says that the Holy Spirit helps us pray when we are weak, don’t know what to pray with sighs and groans too deep for words (Rom 8:26). Our weak attempt at prayer, “Abba,” is strong evidence of the Holy Spirit’s work in our life and our being secure members of God’s family—our own personal Pentecost.

God made the world. We made a mess. God still loves. He sent his son, Jesus. He died for us. He didn’t stay dead. He got up and sent his Spirit into our hearts. We are all learning to talk about God and speak with God who is our loving Parent. He wants us to pray. He doesn’t care if it sounds pretty or not. Just talk to him. If your prayers are more like babble, he won’t laugh at you, make fun of you, or be disappointed. He may smile. But it’s only because he is happy you called.

 

 

02-6284373

Ephesians 4:10

Pastor Tom Johnson, May 12, 2013

02-6284373: that is the postal code of the Mount of Olives. It is the postal code for the Chapel of the Ascension, which is now a mosque. It is the last place Jesus planted his feet on our earthly soil. The disciples met Jesus there in the Mount of Olives which is just east of Jerusalem. It was there where they asked Jesus if he was going to lead them into Jerusalem and usher in a new era for the city of Jerusalem and from there establish a new kingdom of Israel led by her Messianic King. Their hope is that now is the time for change. They hope that today is the day for all the promises to be fulfilled. It is a great expectation to think that their wait may finally be over. But the angels tell them “it is not for you to know the time and periods that the Father has set by his own authority.” They long for a faithful Mayor of Jerusalem, Governor of Judea, and King of the nation of Israel. They want him to fill this important political role. They want to fill their homeland with the wisdom and blessing of Jesus the Christ. But the angels tell them to quit gazing into the sky. They remind the disciples that it won’t be until his coming in great glory that he will appear to them again and be present with them as he had been in his physical body. In our various readings, we observe that the disciples had a limited understanding of the Person and work of Jesus. It is not all bad. But their longings do fall short of what God is actually doing.

Today, it is not too dissimilar. In this country, we hear religious leaders calling for the United States to uphold to Scriptural authority and “return to our Judeo-Christian roots.” We want immediate results! As a family of faith, we want a roof that does not leak. We want to increase our presence and relevance in the community and city of Chicago. We want to experience the glory of God. And now would be nice! As individuals, we wonder where Jesus really is. Where are those benefits of being a citizen of the Kingdom the Bible talks about? Where is the peace God gives? Where is the joy of my salvation? On the surface of things, Ascension may seem like a Festival that hardly needs any more attention than we give. It might seem like Jesus’ ascent into the cloud has little impact on our journey through this earthly life. But we would be wrong.

“He who descended is the same one who ascended far above all the heavens, so that he might fill all things” (Eph 4:10). “…so that he might fill all things.” That is the counterintuitive truth of Ascension: in his departure he is more present. No longer is Jesus limiting his presence to the 02-6284373 postal code. He is now in the 60610 zip code of near north Chicago. Our reading from Ephesians says we now have his body which is “the fullness of him who fills all in all.” The Kingdom of heaven does not have a postal code. Jesus did not vacate the premises when ascended on high. He ascended to fill the whole universe with his presence. Jesus ascends to the Father in his favor, power, and love. He ascends to assure us that he has not limited himself to one postal code but dwells richly in all his creation—especially among his people and in his gifts.

Last week, a colleague and friend of mine said something that helped me better understand Ascension. And many of you know my friend, Pastor Allan Buss, because he preached here for our Stewardship Sunday a year and a half ago. He said, “In our ascended Lord, we have a friend in high places.” I like that. The lifting up of Jesus does not distance him from us but is the ascent of a friend working on our behalf. It puts him into position to continue the work that he began in this world. Theologians call this the ubiquity of the Son of God—his presence is everywhere. We have a friend in high places.

My dad used to tell me, “Tom, it’s not what you know but who you know.” As someone who wanted to feel a sense of accomplishment and recognition, that didn’t go over very well with me. I didn’t like the idea of my dad, or someone else, making a phone call to open doors for me. I wanted to blaze a trail of my own. But my dad’s words have often been true. In the case of Ascension, they are right on.

We have a friend in high places. He has descended in the flesh of the virgin Mary. He has taken up our humanity and bore the weight of our sin and suffered the ravages of a broken world. He died and rose again. And he has ascended on high. We have a friend in high places who has already made that call to God. He has wiped the record of all our sins. We have a friend in high places who has called ahead and booked a room for us in the Kingdom of Heaven. And, he fills all things. The ascended Christ works in all creation sustaining all things by the Word of his power. He dwells with his people as the Body and family of God. He assures us that he is present when two or three reconcile with another in his name. The ascended Christ is with the giving of a cup of water to a child in his name. He gives his Body and Blood with the bread and the wine. He dwells in our hearts by faith, rooted and established in love. Our Friend in high places fills all things.

"Peace"

John 14:27

Pastor Tom Johnson, May 5, 2013

In our Gospel reading, Jesus speaks to us in words of departure—his last will and testament to us:

“Dear family of God,” Jesus says. “Beneficiaries, co-heirs, and recipients of my holy estate and riches of my Kingdom. As King of kings and Lord of lords, I hereby bequeath to you my peace. I give you 100% of my peace which is not to be divided or unspent but shared by all and to the full. I leave you 100% true and abiding peace. The peace I endow—the peace I bestow upon you is like no other peace. You will not find this kind of peace in all the universe. Even with all of its assets and natural resources, the world cannot give to you the peace that I give. So, don’t be anxious. Stop your worrying. Don’t let fear get the best of you. Live your life with the reality of peace.”

With these words, Jesus boldly reveals our restless, inner world. He peals back the veneer. He unmasks the needlessness of our strife, anxiety, and fear. He exposes our careless disregard for God’s transformative peace in our lives. The prophet Jeremiah said the people of God in his day did the same thing, “They have treated the wound of my people carelessly, saying, ‘Peace, peace,’ when there is no peace” (Jer 6:14; 8:11). We speak of peace as the absence or cessation of violence. That is not true peace. Apathy is not true peace. Leaving each other alone is not true peace. It is a sad irony that the most common greeting in both Arabic and Hebrew is “Peace!” Salaam. Shalom. It is even growing in popular American culture. “Peace!” the rock star says. “Peace out!” the teenager says as they sign off their social network.

Peace is not silence. Peace is not goodbye. Peace is not two fingers held up with the “V” of victories because our enemies have been defeated, silenced, or eliminated. Proverbs 16:7 says “When the ways of people please the Lord, he causes even their enemies to be at peace with them.” Peace is not the absence of hostility. Peace does not celebrate the demise of others. Perhaps you can relate to the Proverb (21:9), “It is better to live on top of the roof in the corner than to live inside the house and share it with a contentious [person].” Although this sentiment is true enough, true peace is not going our separate ways. It is not agreeing to disagree. It is not passive aggression.

We as a church family, run the same risk of hypocrisy by our language. We “exchange the peace” together. We welcome one another with the words, “The peace of the Lord.” We greet one another, “God’s peace.” The height of our service is the Body and Blood of our service and the pronouncement of the “Peace of the Lord be with you always!” Our worship ends with the word “peace” in the benediction. The goal of worship is to launch us out into the world as God’s peace-benefactors and his peace-makers. Our interaction can merely be superficial—just another, “Good morning, how are ya?” Jesus tells us in his Sermon on the Mount that God does not want our worship offerings if we are not truly reconciled to each other. It is one time God tells us not to go to church—if we aren’t at peace! “Leave your offering at the altar, Jesus says, and first be reconciled with your sister and brother and then come, worship, give thanks, and experience true peace” (Matt 5:23,24). Peace is not living in denial of broken relationships. Peace is not the bliss of ignorance. Peace is active. Peace takes courage. Peace requires attentiveness. Peace flows out of selflessness. Peace empathizes with both friend and enemy.

The source of this peace is the Prince of Peace. Jesus says, “Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled, and do not let them be afraid.” These words reveal that we needlessly live our lives without authentic peace. In our worldliness, we actually are denying ourselves true peace. And so Jesus gives us his peace. His peace is a sure antidote to strife, anxiety, and fear. Will you and I have the courage to pursue and pray for that peace in our lives? Will we hold Jesus to his word and boldly ask him that we experience his peace? Perhaps it will be the peace as Paul describes it—“the peace of God which surpasses understanding—peace that transcends comprehension—which guards our hearts in minds in Christ Jesus” (Philipp 4:7). It is a peace that, in Jesus’ words, “is not of this world.” It is not delivered “as the world gives.” It is delivered by God’s Son. Peace is given by the Prince of Peace who died and rose again where he has victory over death, sin, and evil.

Over and over again, the resurrected Jesus greets his disciples with the word “Peace!” And now he delivers his peace through the Word, one another, and his Body and Blood in the bread and the wine. Jesus challenges us to leave worry and anxiety behind and to truly experience his peace. That is an offer we should not refuse.