On Sunday morning, for a brief space of time, we leave behind the world of home and work and school—the world where we have our lists of things to do, activities to participate in, tasks to complete. We come here this morning seeking something else. We come here seeking a shift—from the ordinary to the sacred, from doing to being. I invite you to close your eyes. Let go of your list. Recall that it is the season of Lent. Remember the parable of the sower. The sower throws the seed . . . and where it lands determines if it will grow or not grow. Think of it this way: think of the season of Lent as the sower, the time when seeds of faith are thrown with special intensity, as a time a time when God calls to us in a low, urgent voice. Listen. Jesus is being drawn to
(Silent time.)
As we extinguish this light, we acknowledge the darkness and pain of injury done to God’s creation.
(A candle is extinguished.)
Let us pray:
All: Loving God, as we journey through this holy season of Lent, may we be open to your presence. Give us the strength to make the changes that are needed in our lives and the courage to take on the work of transforming the world. Amen.
Thanks be to you, our Lord Jesus Christ,
for all the benefits which you have given us,
for all the pains and insults which you have borne for us.
Most merciful Redeemer, Friend and Brother,
may we know you more clearly, love you more dearly, and follow you more nearly,
day by day.
Amen.--
God sent the Son into the world to save the world. As we prepare for Holy Week, let
us earnestly pray that God will grant all peoples everywhere new birth in the Spirit.
For the church throughout the world, a sign on earth of the
Lord, have mercy.
For our Regional church and our ministers, Bill, Steve, Brenda, and LaTaunya, and all who minister in Christ, and for all the people of God.
Lord, have mercy.
For the members of our Pastor’s Class--Alexis, Kayla, Quintin, Sylvia, Zach, and for all who wish to be born of the Spirit.
Lord, have mercy.
For all who share the faith of Abraham, and for all nations and families of the earth.
Lord, have mercy.
For all who are tempted, oppressed, afflicted, or in need.
Lord, have mercy.
For the sick whose names we have called, and for those whose suffering is less noticeable,
Lord, have mercy.
For the dying, the dead, and all who grieve.
Lord, have mercy.
For our families, friends, and companions, and for all those we love.
Lord, have mercy.
John 3:1-17
1Now there was a Pharisee named Nicodemus, a leader of the Jews.2He came to Jesus by night and said to him, “Rabbi, we know that you are a teacher who has come from God; for no one can do these signs that you do apart from the presence of God.” 3Jesus answered him, “Very truly, I tell you, no one can see the
At age 11, the young boy had an epiphany, prompted by the sight of his alcoholic father lying dead drunk on the front porch of the family house in
That novel tells the story of a handsome Midwestern boy who makes good for the sins of his father by becoming a practical Christian. That term “practical Christian” described a kind of mid-western Disciples’ attitude of the day--a way of taking one’s faith into everyday life. The young boy in the novel becomes a spellbinding orator. He develops a penchant for brown suits and welfare reform, marries a wide-eyed girl (who listens adoringly to his speeches) and wins election to public office in
Years later, the young boy--now, himself a prominent politician was asked if he were a “born again” Christian.
He responded by saying, “Well, I was raised to have a faith and a belief and have been a member of a church since I was a small boy. In our particular church we didn't use that term born- again so I don't know whether I would fit that - that particular term. But I have, thanks to my mother, God rest her soul, the firmest possible belief and faith in God.”
That politician who was uncomfortable being called “born again” was none other than Ronald Wilson Reagan, the 40th President of the
Like many Disciples, Reagan wasn’t sure what this “born again” idea was about. Well, he was in good company. Nicodemus, the Rabbi and Pharisee who came to Jesus in secret at night didn’t understand it, either.
You must be born from above, Jesus tells him. But, how can you be born twice?
Jesus, repeats himself. Everyone is born of water--which I used to believe was about baptism, but now I understand to be about amniotic fluid. We are all born of water from our mothers’ wombs, but Jeus says, we must also be born of Spirit--from above. That’s trickier.
Being born from above is not some kind of secret-handshake-get-out-of-hell-card, but a radical reorienting of one’s self to try to understand the way God looks at the world.
Toward the end of the conversation, Jesus tells Nicodemus the key to being born from above--understanding God’s radical love for the world.
God so loved the world that he gave his son. Being born from above is beginning to understand grace--the idea that God’s love for us is greater than we can imagine.
God so loved the world--the (cosmos) that he gave a son to save it.
David Lose points out that that word cosmos is
“everywhere else in the Gospel of John describes that entity that is at complete enmity with God. Typical is this prayer by Jesus just before his crucifixion: "I 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. I am not asking you to take them out of the world, but I ask you to protect them from the evil one. They do not belong to the world, just as I do not belong to the world" (John
This gives John 3:16 a bit more punch: "For God so loved the God-hating world that he sent his only Son ... ," we might accurately translate. Apparently, at least according to Jesus, God really, really, really loves the world.”
And that’s what this passage is all about. And that’s the difference between “born again” and “born from above.”
When I hear people say that they are born again, what I hear them saying is that they are in a saving relationship with God through Jesus Christ.
But, being born from above, is seeing the world as God sees it--even a world that hates God. Being born from above is understanding that God is in a saving relationship with the world--the whole world--this world, which God loves so much that he became one of us. God so loved the world that he put on our skin and moved among to show us by his life, death, and life again how to really, really, really love the world.
This world.
Some of you might be perturbed that I use Ronald Reagan as an example of a Disciple. Some of you are thrilled.
Is President Reagan the best example of a Christian? Probably not.
But, that’s kind of the point. Being born from above is to see this world as God sees, and to love as God loves, and to understand that no one is beyond God’s grace.
At the peak of his Presidency, Ronald Reagan became friends with his counterpart in the
Reagan told his advisers that he believed Mikhail Gorbachev was a “closet Christian.” He was willing to look at the leader of the “evil empire” and see a child of God. That’s grace, church. That’s being born from above.
Three years ago, this week, Mikhail Gorbachev visited the tomb of Saint Francis, in Assisi, and confirmed what Reagan had suspected twenty years earlier--that he was indeed a Christian--even though his position of power precluded his confession of it.
In this season of Lent, we are encouraged to look inward to see ourselves as we truly are. Given the reality of this passage, maybe we should look around as well. What is God seeing in the world today? How are we to relate to this world that God loves--no matter what?
I’d love to know what you are thinking.
In our offering, we respond gratefully to what God has first given us. All that we do is a response to God’s grace. Everything we are, have, and use comes from God. Best of all, God gives the gift of Jesus Christ and the community of believers. It all begins with God. Our confession of faith in Jesus Christ as our Lord and Savior is not of our doing. As grateful stewards, let us put God first.
Loving God, we give you what is already yours--these gifts of money, and ourselves. Use them and us to make a difference in your world. Amen.
Benediction
Go forth with this truth lodged firmly in your heart:
There is nothing you can do or say that will separate you from the love of God.
In Christ we see the power of God’s transforming love;
The love that was in Christ in is the same love that is in us today.
In every moment of our lives, God knows who we are,
And with patience and love, offers us what we need.
Like Christ, we will open ourselves to God’s presence;
We will place our lives in God’s care;
We will follow Christ in the pursuit of compassion, justice, and peace.
