Late last night I learned of the passing of a theologian who has influenced me greatly: the great Walter Wink. His work on the powers and nonviolence continue to impact the way I live my life and conduct my ministry. He will be greatly missed. Below you will find a link to his obituary:
http://forusa.org/blogs/richard-deats/walter-wink-presente/10545#.T7B56157kcg.facebook
It is 10:11 pm, EST and we are still at it here in Tampa. It has even an incredible experience filled with high's and low's. I am so humbled to have been a part of the worship team and I feel I've made a few friends for life! More to come!
Whew! After a late night of packing and an early morning I have made it to the airport and am getting ready to head to Tampa for General Conference. These next few weeks are filled with promise: for the future of the church, and also personally, musically and liturgically. I know that God is going to be radically present (that's my prayer, anyway) and I look forward to learning, worshipping, renewing old friendships, and making new ones.
At the moment, however, I am enjoying a great cup of coffee and relishing the calm before the storm. Without a doubt the most challenging aspect of this trip will be being away from Sarah and the kids for fifteen days. Sarah is truly a saint and this ministry is so very much a partnership. I give God thanks for her everyday!
Well, the time has come! I covet your prayers for the church, for a sense of the Spirit and the courage to follow where the Spirit calls and for the local churches, friends, and families of all who are headed to Tampa!
Yesterday I had the great priveliage of preaching at AUMC. The text for Sunday was a favorite of mine: Jeus and Thomas, post-resurrection. The sermon title comes from a Mumford and Sons recording titled "Roll Away Your Stone." Below you will find a link to a video of the sermon and the manuscript.
A Welcomed Restart!
John 20:19-49
Introduction: Scars
Scars…we all have em’.
Tell racquetball story
The redemption of scars…the redemption of Thomas
We all have scars. If there is one thing I’ve learned over the last 15 years in ministry is that we are fundamentally very fragile beings….
A Reading from the Gospel of St. John
Read Scripture passage…John 20:24-29
Resurrection involves the whole person...
We often have this pie-in-the-sky, perfectionist idea of resurrection, that perfection means flawlessness. It doesn’t: in the pre-modern biblical understanding of the term perfection means maturity.
Do you see where I am going?
Everyone has scars.
According to the Gospel of St. John, even Jesus, in his resurrected state, still has his scars! I think we ought to thank God that Jesus is also willing to still carry his emotional scars as well.
Everyone has scars.
You know we so often think of Thomas as the doubter.
(put cartoon up here)
I think it's time to move on too.
(put Caravaggio image on screen)
Because when we focus on Thomas and his "doubt" we miss the entire point of the story.
In reality, Thomas is just doing what the disciples and Mary Magdalene did before him.
Had he been with the disciples when Jesus appeared the first time, he wouldn’t have had to suffer what I can only imagine was a week long does of spiritual agony. Can you imagine? Thunk about the spiritual scars that week left on Thomas.
Thomas hears from Mary and later the disciples this incredible news, that they've seen Jesus and, for whatever reason, he has been unable to experience Jesus, post-crucifixion.
And so, he does what so many of us do when we experience disappointment with God, or with life: we set our own conditions for faith, for belief.
Unless I see the wounds in his hands I will not believe.
Unless I get into that grad school, I will not believe.
Unless I get out of this financial mess, I will not believe.
I don’t know about you but I get that.
I so very appreciate Thomas: he doesn’t cave in to the peer pressure, he doesn’t take the easy way out. He wrestles with this out-of-our boundaries Jesus. This state of Jesus, in its fullness is not something we can fully understand.
Thomas’ has to win his own belief. I think that is true for us as well. It is also for many of us a life long process.
Wesley and Teresa.
There is such strength and profound grace and honesty in the struggle.
But this struggle brings us to the main point of the story, which is this: Jesus generously offers himself to Thomas, and to Mary, and to the disciples, and to us.
Jesus gives them, and us, what we need to move from unbelief to belief. (To use the better translated phrase. The word ‘doubt’ is not actually in the earliest manuscripts.) in the earliest understanding of the word belief, in English, means be-love. Thomas was able to move, because of Jesus' grace, from a state of un-love to love, from a lack of trust to trust , to loyalty to God, to faith.
The grace that Jesus offers Thomas leads to the most profound confession of faith in the entire Gospel: “My Lord and my God!” Thomas doesn’t touch, Jesus’ wounds, the pure offer of Jesus’ grace is enough.
Jesus isn’t attempting to shame Thomas into believing, he is giving him what he needs to believe, just as he did for the woman at the well, as he did for the man lying by the healing pool, with no one to put him in, just as he did with the disciples with the resurrection of Lazarus. I am doing this so you may believe!
From the lips of the unbelieving Thomas comes the most profound confession! Thomas recognized God in Jesus. He recognized Jesus as his shepherd, as his entry point to connection with God. From unbelief to incredible action, is Thomas moved.
Do you know the rest of Thomas' story? The vibrant Christian Church in India and in Syria trace their origins to Thomas’ work. He was, traditionally understood, the only apostle to take Jesus’ message of grace and forgiveness and reconciliation beyond the bounds of the Roman Empire.
Do you see what is happening here? Thomas, who didn’t take the easy way out, asks to see Jesus’ wounds. Jesus shows him, Jesus revels his story through his wounds and by so doing transforms Thomas’ spiritual wounds, thus moving him from inaction to action. From unbelief to belief. Thomas becomes the ideal disciple!
Everyone has scars.
Jesus has scars from his earthly life, physical wounds and, certainly emotional wounds as well. They are a part of his story. You can't recognize the fullness of who Jesus is without his scars.
You and I have scars, don’t we? Physical scars and mental scars that are a part of our story, scars that tell where we’ve been, what we’ve seen, what we’ve done and who we are becoming.
Suffering is an incontrovertible facet of embodied existence. You can’t be alive and be immune to suffering.
Our suffering is personal and unique to us. Some of us suffer from the loss of a chid, a sibling, a spouse, a friend. Some of us suffer because our addictions to drugs, alcohol, sex, or money. Some us suffer the great suffering of a lack of meaning in our lives.
Sisters and brothers, Jesus offers us the opportunity to transform our suffering, our scars, and our wounds, not to remove them but to transform them and to never abandon us while so doing.
Our suffering can become either embittering or, with the grace and love offered by Jesus, it can become ennobling. Our suffering can become the seed, watered by ours and God's tears of the beautiful flower of great grace in our lives. Grace for ourselves and grace for others.
Your scars can help to transform yours and other lives!
Who can counsel a recently divorced person better than someone who has recently been divorced?
Who can walk with a recently returned veteran better than one who has served in combat?
Who can hold the hand of one suffering from chemotherapy better than one who has experienced the scourge of cancer themselves? ….
We are called, as the poet Wendell Berry says, to ‘practice resurrection’ in our everyday lives.
When people ask me if I believe in resurrection, I say yes, because I've seen it. I've seen resurrections in communities, in choirs, in relationships, in countries! Resurrection is a real thing and we are called to "practice resurrection" in every facet of our lives, because resurrection involves all of us!
And yes, the great resurrection will come but if we are on the lookout we see resurrection occurring everyday.
Friends, everyone of us has scars, but God will, God wants, if we permit God to do it, to heal those scars and to use them and your story to further Gods reign in the world.
Joe sets up the next few minutes...
(play "Roll Away Your Stone)
Whew! All of my gear for General Conference was shipped today! Yes!!! It was a bit like sending a child off for the weekend...the two basses and the pedal board and I had a quiet moment beofre I sent them on their way.
Today I also recieved the score of the Overture for the opening worship service, written by the great Mark Miller. The bass part is wondeful, I can't wait to hear it all together!
GC is nearly here!
Joe Stobaugh