Death and Destruction Abounds.

I haven't blogged in awhile, both because I've been busy and because I just don't know what to say right now.  The last few weeks in the larger world has been rather messy.  Boston, Texas, Illinois...Syria, Bangladesh, Israel/Palestine.  On and on and on.  I haven't been quite sure what to say about all of this since frankly, I'm exhausted.  As Nadia Bolz-Weber said--which I won't directly quote since I can't remember it word for word--'I'm just not sure what to say anymore.'  She eventually came to the conclusion in her sermon a few weeks ago that God loves us in spite of the crap in the world.

Here's my sermon from this past Sunday with what I had to offer as far as "good news" in this painful world.

Sermon: John 13.31-35

April 28, 2013: Makasan Presbyterian, St. John Episcopal & Cohen Home

Many Protestant congregations use the Revised Common Lectionary, which is a set of scripture texts chosen to be a part of a three-year cycle.  I love using the lectionary, because then it means that congregations all over the world are hearing the same stories of the Christian faith on the same day.  My friends in Colorado, Washington, Texas and Illinois are preaching on the same texts that I am, which means that when we worship here, in this space, it’s like we’re worshipping with the Church, that is, the capital “C” Church.  The whole collection of people who identify themselves as Christ-followers. 

I also love using the lectionary because it means that the texts come up and I need to preach on them, regardless of my feelings.  And let me tell you, sometimes, looking at the lessons for the week, there are no easy spots to start a sermon! 

But, the BEST part of using the lectionary for me is when the right text comes up for what the life of the community has experienced in recent days.

“I give you a new commandment, that you love one another.  Just as I have loved you, you also should love one another.  By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another.” 

Love one another.  It’s simple, right?  It’s one of those Bible passages that doesn’t need me to preach on it, right?  Love one another! 

Two weeks ago, the city of Boston was turned upside down.  In fact, much of the United States felt like it was turned upside down with the city of Boston.  I watched the news show footage of the bombs going off and the smoke filling the sky.  The women and men who were in the midst of a world-famous marathon, running for pride, for the dedication to their sport, for their families, for themselves, suddenly lost their footing, their hearing, their limbs, their sense of safety.  We’ve watched the news.  We’ve seen the medical reports and the stories of the people who were killed in this catastrophe. 

Now, our focus has moved away from cleaning up the blood in the streets and off our foreheads.  The new focus?  How to destroy the two men being charged with the bombing.  We moved from mourning and sadness into vindication and anger. 

Who has done this to us?  To us?                   How will they pay for this?               

That terrorist doesn’t deserve to be in the same hospital as the victims. 

That woman shouldn’t be allowed to wear a hijab.

These are just more Muslim terrorists out to destroy the safe, fair and just nation of the USA!

And here, sisters and brothers, is where our lesson for today, the lesson that seems randomly chosen by some council in 1994, speaks powerfully to us.  See, saying “Love one another” is easy when you already like the person or you feel bad for a person.  It’s easier to love the person sitting next to you, the one that you came to worship with today.  It’s easier to love Martin, Krystle, Lu and Sean.  It’s a lot harder to love Dzhokhar and Tamerlan. 

The time leading up to Jesus’ death was not a pleasant one.  Jesus and his disciples were huddled together in this hidden space, this upper room, far away from the city streets, to protect themselves for a little while longer against what was coming.  I can’t help but to think that this upper room may have felt more like the upper rooms in the homes of Watertown, Massachusetts, where families huddled together to watch the media footage of their hometown being destroyed. 

I have heard the stories of your own people, huddled together in dark rooms where the windows had to be covered and your ancestors practiced the ancient ceremonies that were prohibited by the Indian Religious Crimes Code.  Fear of being arrested for practicing their faith, much like the early disciples were.  Some chose to deny their beliefs, rather than be taken into custody or killed by the ruling authority.  Some even denied their faith three times before the cock crowed.

If we go back to our text, to the story of Jesus gathering with his disciples in the upper room, we heard earlier that Jesus has given a new commandment to love one another as a sign of our discipleship and dedication to God.  Right before this happens, Jesus looks at Judas and says, “Do quickly what you are going to do.”  Jesus knows that Judas will hand him over to Pilate.  Judas takes his bread and walks out of the room.  After the new commandment, Jesus foretells that Peter will deny him three times. 

I know that you are all biblical scholars here, so let’s review. 

Did Judas hand Jesus over to Pilate like Jesus had predicted?

Did Peter deny Jesus three times, just as Jesus predicted?

Yes and yes.  And, Jesus says to love one another, in the middle of these two events, the moment where he acknowledges who will ultimately set the crucifixion in motion, Judas, and the one who is a close friend, but will deny the friendship, companionship and love of his brother Jesus, this being Peter. 

Suddenly, Jesus telling us to love one another becomes a lot more difficult.  Jesus isn’t saying to only love the people gathered in the upper room.  Jesus hasn’t named off the eight to ten people gathered around in this quiet room, hidden away from the city.  Hidden away from people we don’t like and the people trying to kill us.  Jesus says, “Love one another as I have loved you.”  And, Jesus goes on to say, “By doing this, everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another.” 

This message of love isn’t for just the ones gathered inside the room, but for us to love the ones who aren’t in the room.  This message of love isn’t just about the people in the seats next to us.  This message to love one another, the way that Christ loves, is for the ones who have stepped outside.  Love the ones who have denied Jesus Christ.  Love the ones who placed random metal objects into pressure cookers with the desire to destroy lives.  Love the ones who have systematically caused genocide of an entire race of people. 

See, Jesus Christ lived out this command of love by going to the cross to die for each one of us.  Even after being denied and turned in to the Roman authorities, by his own followers, his disciples, his friends, he went to the cross for Judas, for Peter, for Tamerlan, for Martin, for Krystle, for me, for you, for us. 

His love for us is so big and so great, that even when we step out of that upper room and deny him and his love, HE STILL LOVES US!

And if this is the love that Jesus Christ is calling us into, then we live out our discipleship by loving others as he loves us.  We too can choose to love the ones who have stepped out of the room, the ones who have made decisions to hurt others.

This doesn’t eliminate the pain of genocide, bombings, death or heartbreak, nor does loving one another as Christ loves call us to pretend that it doesn’t happen. 

Loving one another is not easy though, nor is it simple.  It is difficult and requires strength that we don’t have on our own.  It’s strength that we get through witnessing the love of Jesus Christ, the one who died on the cross for us, each one of us, no matter what decisions we make or who we surround ourselves with.  This love, this big, awesome love, the type of love that is selfless, pure, patient and kind, is the kind of love the Jesus came into the world to share.  It radiates out of Christ on that cross and throughout the world.  Jesus commands us to receive this gift of love, the love that warms are faces and our bodies and to share this love with one another.

And sometimes, no matter how hard we try, the only way to feel better about the chaos in the world is to cuddle up with someone we love.