Sermons for the Month
Peace in the Face of Life, Death
DATE: November 11th, 2007
SERVICE: 24th Sunday after Pentecost
TEXT: Luke 20:27-38“To all of you Saints here this morning, grace and peace to you from God our Father, from His Son, Jesus Christ and His Holy Spirit. AMEN
Whenever I read today's Gospel lesson I am reminded of the woman who approached me about this text while I was still in seminary. She had been married three times, divorced twice and then widowed. Her first two marriages had been disasters, even abusive, and she was quick to say that the only positive thing that had come out of them was her children. The third marriage had been, in her estimation, to a soul mate who had died after only five years. So, when she heard Jesus saying that in the resurrection there is no marriage, she had mixed feelings. On the one hand she was glad not to be stuck with the first two husbands for eternity, and also relieved that her third husband would not be with his first wife who had died after 25 years of marriage. But, on the other hand, she was disturbed that the two of them would not be man and wife in God's Kingdom. I would guess that similar feelings of confusion abound as we hear today's Gospel reading. In order to sort this all out one of the first things we have to clarify is what exactly is meant by the "resurrection of the dead" in which we regularly confess our belief. This doctrine is rooted in the resurrection of Jesus, and is an essential tenet of the Christian faith. The New Testament teaches that Jesus was raised from the dead and that those who believe in him will be raised like him when Jesus returns to establish God's Kingdom. Both those who are alive at that moment, and those who have died, will be transformed. The Greek word that is translated "resurrection" means literally to stand up once again. It's not a continuation of the spirit, but a bringing alive of the person before God. That brings us, then, to the commonly asked question, "What will life in God's perfect kingdom be like?" Sometimes when people asked that question they say, "What will life in heaven be like?" I always respond that God does not give us many details about that in scripture, and I think that's purposeful, because it's so far beyond our comprehension. Let's return to the passage from Luke for a moment, because putting all this in context will help us understand. Remember first of all that the Jewish religious leaders who are questioning Jesus, the Sadducees, do not believe in the resurrection. Second, it's important to note that they posed the question not because they wanted an answer, but because they wanted to show how ridiculous the idea of resurrection was and to discredit Jesus. Since the Pharisees, the other religious group, believe in the resurrection Jesus is bound to alienate himself no matter what he says. Third, we need to understand that the reason for the law that required a man to marry his brother's widow was so that she would potentially have a son who would eventually take care of her and take her off the family's hands. In asking their question the Sadducees are taking life as we experience it now and projecting it into life after death, setting up the ludicrous situation of one woman having seven husbands in the far beyond. Which one would be stuck with her, they seem to imply? It's shocking when Jesus replies that people are not married in the resurrection. The underlying message - given that culture - is that there will be no need to produce children. Everyone in the resurrection is a child of God, they do not need earthly parents, and parents do not need their children, since no one grows old. There is no death. But, we naturally ask, what will it be like? How will we relate to each other? Will we recognize each other? Will there be babies and old people? If resurrection is not resuscitation followed by resumption of the life previously lived with all of its relationships intact, what is it then, we want to know. And, as I mentioned earlier, we are not given much information. In the book of Revelation we read about gates of pearl and streets of gold to help us visualize something beyond our experience. One commentator said that in one of his seminary Bible classes the professor said not to take these descriptions too literally. John, the author, was seeing a vision of something unlike anything that he had ever seen and was trying to describe it using the best words he had. The professor told the students, "Imagine trying to describe the color red to someone who has been blind since birth. Try as you might, you can't expect to communicate what the color red means to someone who has never seen color." In that same way, John was trying to describe the indescribable. (1) A similar explanation is offered by C.S. Lewis who told a story about an artist who was thrown into prison. Her only light came from a high window, and she could not see outside. This woman gave birth to a son in prison, and as her son grew she tried to explain the outside world to him - wheat fields, mountains, ocean waves breaking on the shore. The boy could not understand, so the woman started doing pencil sketches for him. But, the boy still didn't understand. He thought that the outside world was made up of charcoal grey lines on faced paper, and that didn't seem particularly wonderful to him. (2) It is as if we are in prison in this imperfect world, and while we are privileged to enjoy the beauty of creation and relationship with one another, we also struggle. But, there is something out there beyond our understanding; when we try to describe it, our attempts are inadequate. So, we wait with anticipation for Jesus to return and for the resurrection of the dead and the life of the world to come. I could end there, but I there all this brings up another question that challenges us: what happens to those who have died before Jesus returns? If someone died 30 years ago, as was the case for my mother, and Jesus does not return until tomorrow to initiate the resurrection, what happened to her in the meantime? My personal feeling is that for that person it will be as if no time has passed at all, as if she died one second and was resurrected the next. But, it's not explained in scripture. All we know is that Christians believe in immortality, which means that death may be the end of life as we know it, but it is not the end of our existence. The Bible offers hardly any descriptions of this, which is difficult for us, and is why there are so many non-scriptural theories and explanation to help us deal with the unknown. What we do know is that nothing, not even death, can separate us from God's love. So, the view beyond the grave is a mystery, but the constant nature of God's presence and love is not. Yet again we are being asked to trust God, and this is one instance in which, really, that's all we can do. Perhaps that's why Jesus, just before his own death, told his followers not to worry because one day he would return for them. Then he spoke these words, "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 no not let them be afraid." (John 14:25ff) So it is that in life, and in death, we can be at peace. Perhaps that's the only detail we really need to know.
AMEN
(1) Sermonwriter, Proper 27C (Nov. 11, 2007) Luke 20:27-38, pgs. 8-9, www.sermonwriter.com(2) Same as above
Information also gathered from: "A View Beyond the Grave", Sunday, Nov. 8, 1998, Luke 20:27-28, www.sermonhelp.com