"The Lord be with you"

Ephesians 1:15-23



Pastor Tom Johnson, May 17, 2015

Jesus ascends into heaven. He is not going away. He with us in a different way now. He is no longer visible all the time like he had been these 40 days after his resurrection. We may not see him. But he is with us. It’s what Jesus says as he ascends in the Gospel of Matthew: “Remember, I am with you always, to the end of the age” (Matt 28:20). “I am with you,” Jesus reassures us. Such a simple word of encouragement: “I’m with you.” “I’ve got your back.” “I am your companion.” “I will not abandon you nor forsake you.” “I will not leave you alone as orphans.” “I am with you.”

In our second reading from Ephesians, Paul unpacks the depth of that phrase “The Lord be with you.” I pray that God give you a spirit of wisdom and revelation…that the eyes of your heart be enlightened…that you know the hope to which he called you…the riches of his glorious inheritance…the immeasurable greatness of his power for us…the same power that worked in Jesus’ resurrection and ascension.” In other words, Paul’s prayer is that we would know that the Lord is with us—that we would be assured that the Lord is with us—that we would experience in our daily lives that the Lord is with us.

Paul’s prayer will be answered when we become students of the Bible. Scripture will challenge us to go deeper into wisdom and truth. The Word of God will enlighten our minds to know and experience the power of the Gospel. It can be uncomfortable and humbling to realize that our understanding may be superficial and just scratching the surface. It can be a bit unsettling to ask difficult questions of ourselves.

There is a troubling question that is asked over and over again in the Psalms. The question is meant to abuse the believer. The question is an assault from the adversary. The question is “Where is your God?” Where is God when we are in trouble? Where is God when we feel lonely? Where is God when we are feeling sad? Where is God when things are going our way? Where is God when we are enjoying the company of family and friends? Where is this Jesus who ascended into heaven? Where is your God? How do I know that the Lord is with me? What assurance do I have that I am growing in a spirit of wisdom? How do I know that I am on the path that will lead to greater hope and faith?

Thankfully, Paul’s prayer just happens to be what God also wants us to experience. Paul is praying for exactly what Jesus promises in his ascension: “You will be my witnesses.” “You will experience my presence.” Did you notice the language of Paul’s prayer? It is God who gives a spirit of wisdom and revelation. It is the Holy Spirit and Scripture that enlightens our hearts. It is the Lord who broadens and deepens our spiritual lives. This is the power, Paul tells us—this is the power which was at work in God’s Son when he raised him from the dead. This is the power at work in our lives. This is the power which raised Jesus to the right hand of the Father…“…in the heavenly places far above all rule and authority and power and dominion, and above every name that is named.” All things have been placed under the reign of the King of kings and Lord of lords—most especially us, the church, “which is his body, the fullness of him who fills all in all.” In other words, we should be as bold as Paul to pray for what God has promised: “God, you promised to be with me and your people. Give me a spirit of wisdom and revelation. Enlighten our hearts by your Word and Spirit. Broaden and deepen my walk with you.”

The ascension is about God raising Jesus to his rightful place to lovingly lead and rule his Kingdom. It seems counterintuitive but Jesus is more present now among us than when the disciples saw him, heard his voice, and even touched him. Are you confused or perplexed by the simple and profound truth of Jesus? The Lord is with you. God is giving you a spirit of wisdom and revelation. Do your spiritual eyes feel blinded by the light of the Gospel? The Lord is with you. He is enlightening the eyes of your heart. Do you feel humbled, stretched, or blown away by the truth of Scripture? The Lord is with you. These are growing pains. This is the power of the resurrection and ascension at work in your life.

The Lord be with you—not may be with you—not will be with you—but be with you. It is a prayer. It is a promise. It is a bold call to God to do what he already wants to do—what he has already has done—and is doing. The Lord be with you as we pray together and for one another. The Lord be with you as we listen to his Word and the good news of the Gospel. The Lord be with you as we extend a hand to each other and a smile—when we give one another the assurance of our friendship and common bond in the Lord. The Lord be with you as he comes to us in his Body and his Blood. The Lord be with you as he sends us out into the world with his blessing. The Lord be with you as he raises you up just as he raised up his own Son.

"The Fullness of Joy"

John 15:9-17

Pastor Tom Johnson, May 10, 2015

Jesus shares his strategic plan with us today in our Gospel reading. He connects the dots all the way from eternity’s past, his eternal love, his earthly life, death, resurrection, and the life and the joy of the believer far into the future. This is Jesus’ vision for our lives. This is his plan for you and me. This is his hope, prayer, and desire for each believer. “I have said these things to you so that my joy may be in you, and that your joy may be complete.” “I appointed you to go and bear fruit, fruit that will last,” Jesus says. God wants us to experience joy—joy that will be full—joy that will last. The way Jesus describes this joy helps us understand what true joy is. True joy is rooted in God. True joy flows from his love. Joy is eternal: from the past, in the present, and into the future. Joy transcends time. Joy is contagious. We catch it when we encounter God. We are inoculated with the good news of Jesus Christ. Joy is poured into our lives. Joy fills us up. Joy overflows into the lives of those around us. The believer says, “My cup runneth over” and shares the joy with those around.

It might be helpful to distinguish this from happiness. Happiness comes and goes. Happiness depends on our immediate pleasure. Happiness is not rooted. It has a short life and a limited space. Happiness is temporal and limited. We should all be challenged to ask ourselves if we aren’t neglecting the joy that Jesus so clearly promises here. We don’t have to live our lives jaded. We don’t need be paralyzed by cynicism. It’s not God’s will that you or I be a constant source of negativity. We should not be held captive by our disappointment in ourselves or others. We don’t have to sit in judgment of those around us. We don’t need to be filled with criticism and infected by poisonous thoughts. Our negative spirits—our continuous addiction to judging those around us is really a prison. It is solitary confinement cut off from relationship, light, and the joy that Jesus has planned so long for, gave his life for, and prays that we will experience.

Fast bound in Satan’s chain’s I lay;
Death brooded darkly o’er me.
Sin was my torment night and day;
In sin my mother bore me.
But daily deeper still I fell;
My life became a living hell,
So firmly sin possessed me. 

But God had seen my wretched state
Before the world’s foundation,
And mindful of His mercies great,
He planned for my salvation.
He turned to me a father’s heart;
He did not choose the easy part
But gave His dearest treasure.

This is the economy of joy. This is the ecology of God’s joyful vineyard. “I have said these things to you so that my joy may be in you, and that your joy may be complete.” “I appointed you to go and bear fruit, fruit that will last,” Jesus says. This is the picture of joy—a vine. And what a beautiful description it is. Look around you. It’s spring. I happen to have a grape vine in my back yard. Long before it grew from a seed, I always wanted one. Long before I picked it up from the nursery I planned where I would plant it and the fruit I desired. It is now deeply rooted. It has survived the death of winter. It is now coming back to life. Life flows from the roots to each little stem. To be a branch of this vine is to be tapped into the life-flow and joy of it’s fruit. To be plugged into the sap of the vine’s life is to have the assurance that you will survive deadly winter. You will survive drought. Your life—your joy will not depend on the day to day changes of this world. Your joy will transcend the storms of this life. Your joy is hidden in the wonder of the Vine, Jesus Christ.

Our joy is rooted in the eternal love and grace of God. We are accepted. Our sins have been forgiven. “No one has greater love than this, to lay down one’s life for one’s friends.” God’s love for us through his Son is unparalleled. He gives us a future and a hope and the assurance of eternal life. “This is what I want for you,” Jesus says, “that you experience the fullness of joy—that my joy flow into your lives, fill you up, and overflow to those around you.” “This is my vision—that you be both recipients and conduits of joy. This is my plan—that you bear fruit of love and joy in the world around you—that you find sustainable joy—that you bring authentic and enduring joy to those around you.”

Dear Christians, one and all, rejoice,
With exultation springing,
And with united heart and voice
And holy rapture singing,
Proclaim the wonders God has done,
How his right arm the vict’ry won.
What price our ransom cost Him. (from hymn "Dear Christians, One and All Rejoice")

“Sing!” “Rejoice, and again I say rejoice!” Celebrate what God has accomplished. Relish in his eternal love. Your joy will be full. God will fill you. And he will use you to bring the fullness of joy to those around you.

“The Ethiopian Eunuch”

Acts 8:26-40

Pastor Tom Johnson, May 3, 2015

Ethiopians have a rich and ancient history with Israel dating back when the Queen of Sheba travels to see the greatness of Solomon, the King of Israel (1 Kin 10). But they are not Hebrews. They are foreigners who must come into the people of God as outsiders through instruction and ritual—including circumcision. But there is little hope for Eunuchs. They are ceremonially and permanently unclean—forbidden by the law to enter the Temple. There is nothing a eunuch can do to reverse how these males were born or what the authorities did to young boys. To be Ethiopian and to be a eunuch is to have two counts against you. The Ethiopian goes on a very long journey to Jerusalem but still unable to enter the Temple. He is on his way home on a desert road going south toward Gaza. He still has a long journey ahead. He probably will follow the Mediterranean coast to Egypt and then go down the Nile River to his home in Ethiopia.

Philip had just witnessed his companion Stephen being stoned to death because of his faith in Jesus. Believers are scattered all over Judea and Samaria. Saul is persecuting and ravaging believers. Philip is one of those scattered into Samaria and preaching the Gospel as he went. That’s when God calls Philip to go even farther into foreign territory—into a remote place. God simply calls him to go south into the wilderness. He doesn’t say why or who or if he will meet anyone there. Just go. And away Philip goes.

The Ethiopian is a gentleman and a scholar. He takes care of the queen of Ethiopia’s treasury. He wastes no time on his journey. He reads Scripture—a scroll from Isaiah. Why is the Eunuch reading Isaiah? Perhaps it is because Isaiah is the one prophet who speaks of a time when Eunuchs will no longer call themselves a dry tree but will have an inheritance in the house of God (Isa 56:3-5).

Two believers on two different journeys. Philip is answering his call into the wilderness even though his mission is vague and uncertain. The Ethiopian is answering his call into the Scripture even though its meaning is vague and uncertain. They are two sojourners on two similar, but distinct, paths about to intersect. When Philip sees the Ethiopian in his chariot, God calls him to go and walk alongside him. God calls Philip to accompany the Ethiopian on his journey. Philip hears the Ethiopian reading aloud from Isaiah and asks him if he understands. “And how can I,” the Ethiopian says, “unless someone guides me?” And so the Ethiopian invites Philip into the chariot to take a seat right next to him. They are now true companions on a spiritual journey. Philip is now called by both God and the Ethiopian. Philip has the privilege of leading a new friend into the joy of discovery.

The Ethiopian learns how reading Scripture is an encounter with the living Word. The Bible’s message is relevant to us now and for each generation of pilgrims after us. What the prophet Isaiah wrote down hundreds of years before speaks clearly of the suffering and resurrected Jesus—the One who is, who was, and who is to come. This passage from Isaiah chapters 52 and 53 speaks of the suffering Servant of God—the sacrificial Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world. This Scripture is the starting point of a life-transforming conversation. Philip would have shared how this Jesus of Nazareth suffered under Pontius Pilate, was crucified like a common criminal, but was the innocent and perfect Lamb of God. This troubling truth would be followed by good and encouraging news. He would share how Jesus rose again on the third day to bring us the “portion”—the inheritance of an eternal kingdom that Isaiah talks about—the forgiveness of sins and eternal life.

This is also our mission as the Body of Christ—to lead people to a helpful, healing, and redemptive understanding of Jesus in the Scripture—and to do so through conversation, making a new friend, and becoming a companion on life’s journey. The Ethiopian is not called to journey alone. He is humble and courageous enough to admit that. He knows the story of our first parents Adam and Eve. He knows that when God created Adam, he said, “It is not good for the man to be alone.” God brings Eve into Adam’s life. God brings Philip to the Ethiopian. You know the saying: even the Lone Ranger had Tanto, a faithful and caring friend. They certainly would talk about Baptism. Because when the Ethiopian sees a body of water he asks what prevents him from being baptized. “I was excluded from the Temple because of my ethnicity and my physical body. But there is nothing to keep me from the water, the Spirit, and the adoption into God’s Family now, is there? So he is baptized.

And so this story should challenge us to look around for empty seats in the chariots that daily pass us by—whether they be in our pews, buses, trains, park benches, or lunch tables. How can you and I be a friend, an encouragement, and a companion along the way? Today, we have water in our font. What prevents us from baptizing Roger Park this morning? What obstacle is there from him being adopted into our family and assuring him, his parents, his family, and his sponsors that he is a royal son of the living God. What prevents us from seeing the fullness of the promise of the Gospel of Jesus Christ? Nothing. Nothing will separate us from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus! It is a joy and privilege to be in this chariot together. We all get to be Philips and Ethiopians to each other. We get to celebrate what God is doing in the world through us through the power of the resurrected Christ. This first convert from the heart of Africa reminds us that black lives indeed matter to God. And even better than that: all lives matter to God. And in Holy the Word and gift of Baptism we are not only companions for life’s journey together; we are completely forgiven. We are fully accepted. And we are truly family.