Readings
Acts 1:15-17, 21-26
Psalm 1
1 John 5:9-13
John 17:6-19
Today, as we near the end of Easter, we do something interesting in terms of our Gospel reading. We go back. Back before the crucifixion to the night of the last supper. And we hear a part of what biblical scholars call Jesus’ “high priestly prayer,” in which he prays for his disciples, for their mission, and for their wellbeing.
Because this passage is about the disciples, and by extension us, and our mission in the world. I found myself, in light of the last couple of weeks worth of sermons, asking the question: “what is the purpose of the Church?”
Well it is clear from today’s passage that the followers of Jesus are called to be and do something and it is clear that it is in opposition to “the world.” Jesus is quite concerned about the protection of his followers and he is also quite concerned for their mission.
But all of it hinges on the disciples’ relationship to “the world.” Our mission is to be in the world.
Back in Lent, right before Easter, we talked about the idea of “the world” expressed in the Gospel of John. Remember that the term “the world” does not mean all of creation. No, “the world” means the fallen realm that exists in estrangement from God and is organized in opposition to God’s purposes.
Recall with me that a better way of saying this might be to substitute for “the world” the phrase “the system.” It is a reality bigger than ourselves that is embedded in our structures and institutions, one that aggressively shapes human life and seeks to hold human beings captive to its ways.
And it has been around for a long time. Throughout human history it has been recognized both within the spiritual and the secular world. Whether looking at the prophets of the Old Testament and their critique of ancient Israelite culture, the philosopher Thomas Hobbes description of a world in which the life of humanity is “solitary, poor, nasty, brutish, and short” or countless saints since Jesus. The reality of “the world,” as Jesus names it, has been with us and continues to be with us.
It is a system that lives out of fear. Fear of scarcity, fear for one’s safety, and fear of isolation. It is a system that is marked by greed, domination, and violence, and death. It is a system so pervasive that we participate in it without recognition and often without any clear vision of an alternative.
But we, as Christians, are called to live a different way. We are called to follow in the way of Jesus. We are called to live as one with Christ, just as Christ lives as one with his Father. Rather than embrace greed and materialism, we are called to live with the understanding that the nature of reality is one of abundance, not scarcity, and to share what we have. Rather than practicing power over and against, we are called to live out of mutuality and love. And rather than violence, we are called to move through the world choosing non-violent means of engaging others, including our enemies.
This is the path of love. This is the path of resurrection. This is the path that leads to life, the life of God, a life that does not end. And it is this path in Christ that will “make our joy complete.”
But let us be clear. Those in the world about us who are actively and non-reflectively participating in the system, and that includes Christians who have confused the world for the Gospel, will be, at best, confused by our behavior and attitudes and, at worst, outright threatened and hostile. This is what Jesus means when he says that the world “hates” his followers.
Now our temptation when faced with such a reaction is to drift back into the system and “fight fire with fire.” The temptation is for us to think our job is to fix the system and make it work to our purposes. But that is not our task. That is not the purpose of the Church.
No, our purpose is, as I said earlier, to follow in the way of Jesus. Our purpose is to make manifest the presence of Christ in our own place and time. Our purpose is to proclaim the Gospel and the hope that it brings. It is to proclaim an alternative to the system.
We are to not simply try and fix what’s broken but to be the alternative to the brokenness. We are not simply to take the secular vision of one particular political party or another and Christianize it as a means to usher in the Kingdom of God. We are to live in the Kingdom of God in the midst of the brokenness as a witness and an alternative. Or as Jesus says it, we are to be “in the world but not of it.”
What does that look like? Well it means not buying into the polarizing culture we live in. It means seeing the humanity of those with whom we do not agree. It means being a voice and a presence for peace in the midst of violence and of war. It means eschewing the materialism of our culture and choosing instead to live simply and share what we have generously. It means forgiving those who have wronged us and praying for those we call our enemies.
And above and beyond that it means claiming all of that, not simply because we are good people and it is “the right thing to do,” but because of Jesus of Nazareth and what following in his way brings. As I said already, we are called to be his witnesses. We are called to claim a higher calling. We are called to do nothing less than make Christ manifest in the world today.
And we need to do that whether those around us like us for it or not. We need to be brave. We ourselves need to recognize that there is a legitimate alternative to the ways of what Jesus calls “the world.”
May we have the courage and the conviction to be the Church in the world today. May we embrace the living Word which dwells within us and among us. May we be agents of peace, justice, mercy, and love. And by doing so may we usher in God’s kingdom. May we be a source of light and transformation. May Christ’s joy be within us and our joy be made complete.