Listen to the gospel and the sermon here.
John 17:6-19
6”I have made your name known to those whom you gave me from the world. They were yours, and you gave them to me, and they have kept your word. 7Now they know that everything you have given me is from you; 8for the words that you gave to me I have given to them, and they have received them and know in truth that I came from you; and they have believed that you sent me. 9I am asking on their behalf; I am not asking on behalf of the world, but on behalf of those whom you gave me, because they are yours. 10All mine are yours, and yours are mine; and I have been glorified in them. 11And now I am no longer in the world, but they are in the world, and I am coming to you. Holy Father, protect them in your name that you have given me, so that they may be one, as we are one. 12While I was with them, I protected them in your name that you have given me. I guarded them, and not one of them was lost except the one destined to be lost, so that the scripture might be fulfilled. 13But now I am coming to you, and I speak these things in the world so that they may have my joy made complete in themselves.14I have given them your word, and the world has hated them because they do not belong to the world, just as I do not belong to the world. 15I am not asking you to take them out of the world, but I ask you to protect them from the evil one. 16They do not belong to the world, just as I do not belong to the world. 17Sanctify them in the truth; your word is truth. 18As you have sent me into the world, so I have sent them into the world. 19And for their sakes I sanctify myself, so that they also may be sanctified in truth.
On Thursday this past week we celebrated the Ascension of Jesus Christ. Our friends from All Saints Episcopal Church across the street joined us in worship and celebration. And on Thursday, the 40th day of Easter we not only celebrated Jesus’ joyful ascension, but we recalled Jesus’ commission to the disciples. To be witnesses to all the ends of the earth. From Jerusalem to Samaria and beyond. Jesus lifted his hands to bless the disciples and while he was blessing them he left them and was taken up into heaven. The disciples were left looking to the sky
The disciples have had a rough few weeks haven’t they? For starters they dedicated their lives to following a rabbi, trusting and hoping for him to be the Messiah. And in a matter of weeks everything seems to come unhinged. First they paraded into Jerusalem knowing good and well that they’ll face opposition. They share an intimate meal with Jesus not knowing it’d be his last. Jesus speaks a bit prophetically about things to come. While praying Jesus is taken into custody. He is tried, beaten, crucified and murdered. Their hoped-for Messiah is dead. But wait, three days later he’s alive, appearing to them behind closed doors and on a dusty road to Emmaus. They rejoice for he is alive and once again among them. And then there is the Ascension, where Jesus blesses them one last time and then ascends to heaven. And just like that he’s gone again.
What a emotional and spiritual whiplash their relationship with Jesus is. They’ve crossed the highest mountains and the lowest lows….through fear, joy, death, betrayal, denial, and hiding, and now after all of that the text says they returned to Jerusalem with great joy...praising God.
The disciples return to Jerusalem, and it’s back to business as usual. The disciples regroup with a crowd of about 120 people, let’s call it a congregation. And Peter steps forward to remind them that they down one member, they’re a council member short. If you recall, Judas who betrayed Jesus chose money and greed over his relationship with Christ and he then took his own life. So Peter, council president, reminds the congregation that Scripture foretold this moment, and therefore the time has come to fill Judas’ place among the disciples. So they hold an election.
Maybe I am biased, but does this whole scenario not seem a bit weird? Hear me out. We’re only weeks from the shock and awe of Jesus’ death and resurrection. Days after Jesus commissions them and Ascends to heaven. And this is their priority? Jesus said go and tell and they said, “yah ok, in a minute…”
Sure replacing Judas fulfills scripture and therefore must take place, but the timing of the whole situation seems odd. Call me crazy, but your best friend, your rabbi, mentor, teach, messiah was brutally murdered. He was dead and buried. You were in mourning. Then he rose from the grave. He came to you in your hiding on multiple occasions telling you to hit the streets and spread the word.
Finally, the once dead now alive Messiah blesses you and tells you to go to all the world and spread the good news…and the first thing they do is check the constitution and its bylaws?
Nevertheless, the nominating committee identifies two among them suited to serve ...Joseph and Matthias. They cast lots to avoid human influence on the election and the lots fell the Matthias. So Matthias joined the other 11 disciples in order to fulfill scripture. Business as normal. Easy enough.
Last Sunday was a Spirit-filled morning. We celebrated the resurrection together over word and wine. Then I hung out with 4 of our St. Mark’s kids to talk about first communion. We made bread. We talked about the sacrament of communion. We talked about God’s promise of love and grace in the meal. We talked about Jesus being present through the bread and wine. We talked about welcoming everyone to God’s table to be fed and nourished. We even broke bread together over lunch. I was on fire with the joy of the Spirit when I left this church home! I mean every Sunday those 4 kids reach out their hands to me at the rail, begging to taste and see. Obviously the Spirit was moving and I was excited. But the moment I walked in my house, set my stuff down, and let my dog out, I nap. Apparently my fervor for the Spirit was no match for the couch.
Perhaps it is that I take the Spirit for granted. I know that Spirit is at work and I know that the Spirit will continue to be at work...so in the meantime I’ll focus on me and the pressures of the world...and I’ll catch the Spirit next week.
When I woke up from my nap, I made my to-do list. From washing dishes and vacuuming...answering emails and scheduling appointments. I was back to business as usual.
What about you? When you come to this nave, to be among friends and community, siblings in Christ. When you worship God, receive forgiveness, sing alleluia, and pray for the world. When you come to the table to be fed and nourished…when you hear the word of God proclaimed, the love and grace of God who loved the world so much that Jesus came to walk among us and experience the depths of life…After all of that, and the Spirit alive within you...what do you do next? Do you take to the ends of the earth, or do you settle back into business as usual?
Maybe the disciples had thought they had seen it all. Death and resurrection. The story of Easter, what could the Spirit possibly do next that they hadn’t seen already. Between resurrection and ascension, was it really possible for the Spirit to catch them off guard...there will be plenty of time for proclaiming the gospel and living out Jesus’ commission later…“yah ok Jesus, in a minute…”
Have you ever experienced this “setting-aside” of the Spirit. Almost as though we compartmentalize God and the call? Maybe we feel an immense presence of the Spirit in worship, and like the disciples we’re looking to the ascended Christ in awe, Yet some time between 11:00 and noon today we might set that aside. Check it off the list. Put the lid back on the box until next week? It’s back to business.
It seems easy to put faith aside. To prioritize the busy-ness of life over the Spirit. Give me just a minute God and I’ll be right there. Hang on for a few days and let me finish these other tasks and then I promise I’ll make some time for the Spirit to lead. It’s easy to move from one thing to the next, carrying on our lives business as usual, unaccepting or unaware that just maybe the power of God in Christ might have actually changed us.
It is precisely those moments when the Spirit intercedes. We think we have a handle on things and then the Spirit wakes us up and shakes the priorities of our lives. Just as we get comfortable the Spirit will be up to something.
I give the disciples a hard time. And it’s easier looking from the outside in. At first glance it seems like they haven’t been changed at all by the events that just took place. But in the midst of their logistical business we glimpse or sign of what’s to come. The text tells us that they selected two among them as candidates for this apostleship ministry. And before they cast lots….they prayed. They prayed “Lord you know everyone’s heart. Show us which one of these two you have chosen to take the place in this ministry and apostleship.” Before they cast lots the disciples prayed, “Lord, thy will be done.” Just as Jesus had taught them. Lord, thy will be done.
It’s a minor detail in the overall story, but I think it’s a testament to their lives in Christ. Maybe it’s a tiny change, but it is a powerful change. Even in the midst of their mundane logistical business, they seek God’s guidance and the Spirit’s presence. And if they truly have been changed by God in the death and resurrection of Jesus as well as the commission to proclaim the gospel, then business will never be as usual. That small moment of prayer is a symbol of their new lives in Christ. From here on, everything they do and say, every action they take...Thy will be done.
Friends, the same is true for us. The Spirit is alive and well within us. And the Spirit is up to something. Even in the nuances of our lives...the busyness of work and family...even in the trivial check-list items of our everyday living, the Spirit is working. Make no mistake, we can not separate ourselves from the Spirit. No matter what we do, we do not go without the presence of the Holy Spirit.
This is what Jesus promised the disciples at the Ascension. Jesus promised they we will never walk this journey of life along. Though he may no longer be physically present, the Spirit accompanies us in our life of faith. We can not and will not be detached from that truth. In the resurrection of Jesus we are forever changed. And perhaps, just maybe...the disciples returned to Jerusalem with great joy...praising God because they finally knew this to be true.
They may have no idea what the Spirit will do next, and nor do we, but in the meantime, even in the logistical tasks of the early Christian church, the disciples give witness that God’s will be done. I think we would do well to follow their example. After all the Spirit is not something we can dismiss or defer our attention. The Spirit is always present. So rather than delay faith or set the Spirit aside, God would have us embrace her. It is God’s promise to us..even during tests or projects, exams or deadlines, from reports to elections, to-do lists and beyond...The Spirit abides in us. It is God’s gift for us. Amen
© Preached by Pastor Daniel Locke on May 13, 2018 @ St. Mark's Lutheran Church
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