God In Every thought. Word and Deed

God in Every Thought, Word and Deed  

Genesis 12:1-4a 

John 3:1-17   

Change is hard. Change is so hard, that we ordinarily think of young people as an example of those who willingly choose to make changes in the their lives. We think of the excited young people choosing to go away to college, or join the military, and we see that as healthy and ordinary. 

Those of us who are more mature, often identify the major changes in our lives with losses, and most often with losses we cannot control. The big ones are; loss of a spouse, loss of our jobs, and the continual degradation of our health and vigor. These are changes that are accompanied in no small part with grief work. 

There are other changes that adults make that are distinctive in the exercise of choice and intention. Changing careers in response to a long held dream has seen an increase in this day and age. As the loyalty and benefits of living with the corporate world are so often less reliable than in the past, more people are choosing to follow their passions. Or sometimes we grow emotionally and intellectually and need to spread our wings. Martha and I belong to that category.

I told my pastor friends this week that the Hoy Spirit had given me a sermon to preach this Sunday, that would offer a persuasive new image of God. And more than simply understanding God in a new way, I would share how to be like Christ and nearer to God. As soon as this was preached, and posted on the blog on Tuesday, we may never need another sermon, and all of the pastors would be done. 

Abram had a close relationship with God. Please note, this is before any of the traditional kinds of religious structures were even imagined. God found a soul willing to be in relationship. Abram did not have to try to define his relationship with God to fit any preconceived notions or theories. God was just his partner in conversation, where Abram grew in wisdom and peace. And then God compelled Abram to set out and do something totally different, leave home without a clear destination or assurance. 

In John’s gospel we meet Nicodemus, who was a thoughtful and respected member of the inner circle in the Temple. He heard of Jesus, his preaching and acts of healing, and sought him out in the cover of the night. There is no point in advertising a new direction, when you are simply reaching out to see and understand. 

Jesus recognizes and respects Nicodemus. But he offers Nicodemus a teaching that sounds more like a logic riddle than it sounds like moral exhortation. Born from above, kingdom of heaven, kingdom of earth, language that does not fit into the constructs of faith as Nicodemus and the Temple knew them. This is an invitation to “see” a relationship with God in a whole new way. 

I frequently use the image of the Holy Spirit as the active and caring presence of God that passes between and among people of faith gathered together. I believe that this Spirit is most evident when we gather for worship, or simply gather at a church meeting, intent on honoring the gifts each person brings, and honoring the wisdom the Holy Spirit breathes into our conversation. We become more than ourselves, and wiser than our individual selves. 

In recent personal devotions, it has been suggested that I try to think of that interactive and caring Spirit as the very nature of God. If God is love, which is such a nice and tidy handle to use, God may indeed be characterized by interactive caring. When we honor the Spirit in our midst, our egos are reduced, and we become accessible to the person of God. 

This is a new way to think about who God is, and how then we can put ourselves in the presence of God. This allows us to reduce our reliance on the attributes of God the Father the Creator. The attributes of God the Almighty, eternal, all-powerful can be recognized as a projection of our own ego needs, and less a description of God. 

If we allow the model of the Christ in the gospel to physically express this interactive caring, and be less a projection of our desire to be /or be served by a super human savior, again projected from our own experience of needs, the presence of God seems so much more immediate, and available, less reliant on the boundaries of our own projections on a screen of heroic proportions.  

And you may be thinking, “Uh-oh, if Nicodemus was confused, this kind of talk is not helping make it clearer, Pastor Chuck.” Sorry about that. But you see, Lent is a time when we are intentionally allowing God to invite us to grow spiritually. And spiritual growth often comes meeting new ideas, and turning them over in our hearts, often in the cover of the night. 

It is in the setting of inviting the respected Nicodemus to know God in a new way, that Jesus intones those favorite verses, 3:16 and 3:17. 3:16 "For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, so that everyone who believes in him may not perish but may have eternal life.” 

In 3:16 John says God so loved the world that he “gave his son.” In all of the other places in the New Testament, the language is more like “he sent his son.” Here the emphasis is on the incredible and boundless generosity of God. Even as human beings, we know the power of love to inspire us to acts of sacrifice for people we love. With God, this inspiration is magnified. It is expanded to the eternal dimension.  

3:17 "Indeed, God did not send the Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him.” At the heart of 3:17 is a conflict with the presumption that we are unworthy sinners and beyond saving. But we are assured, God LOVES the world and PROVIDES eternal salvation. 

We confront the natural human condition to consider the limitations of our existence. We believe that we cannot afford to be generous, because there is not enough to go around. “If I give to others, I will not have more, and I want more - power, prestige, and possessions.” These are the attributes of our egos. 

God explodes the myth of scarcity by denouncing condemnation - in favor of love, sacrifice and eternal salvation. I listened to the test of the emergency siren that calls the volunteer first responders to face danger in service to the community. Let this gospel message act as an emergency siren in this house, calling the faithful to adopt a willingness to let an interactive caring be our typical response, acting in the image of the Christ, who demonstrates the model of God. 

Change is hard. But we do not have to abandon house and home like Abram in order to be faithful. We might need to learn to permit our sense of self to align closer to the divine model of interactive caring, and less bounded by the appetites of the ego. 

Nicodemus was encouraged to encounter a non-traditional image of God. This new image of God, provides new ways of being like the Christ, new ways of being in the world, and honoring the presence of God in ways that are much more readily available than we ever knew. 

We recognize now the presence of God does not require super human powers of superior prayer and discipline. God meets us more than halfway. God is everywhere. Let us incline our hearts to feel the presence of God, every time we demonstrate interactive caring; with every thought, word and deed. This changes our hearts and minds to be more like the Christ, in harmony with all the ways we have been singing the praises of God our whole lives long.

The whole “posture of confession” that is part of the theme this Lent - is letting the ego’s desire for “More” be replaced with interactive caring. To take our focus off of our own appetites and instead listen with care to others - does not seem like a big deal, or the stuff of Christian mystics. But in truth, it is an admission that God is THAT CLOSE to us every moment of every day. Here we see the symbolic “giving up chocolate for Lent” is an exercise in quieting our human appetites, and that would be valuable if it were coupled with intentional acts of listening with our hearts open, to the legitimate needs of others. 

Facing change does not need to be as scary as leaving home and homeland. The best change can be as easy as choosing to actively look for opportunities to “feel close” to God, as we care for others. These simple steps can provide great gains in our spiritual life, just like that! 

The “posture of confession” we seek in Lent, is allowing the image of God in our hearts to have a different, and more inviting form. The fear of change is replaced by our intentional focus on the legitimate needs and concerns of others, without first testing those needs against our own egos. We intentionally align our spirits with the Holy Spirit, that lives and breathes life into our interactions with God and neighbor. 

Thank you God for alerting us that you are so close. Thank you God for making it easy for ordinary people to draw near to you, this day, and every day, Amen.