St. Timothy's Church

Sneezing Out the Gospel

Third Sunday of Easter  – 2008

 

“Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind'; and, 'Love your neighbor as yourself.'”  Luke 10.27

 

Note this shattering conclusion: We become what we worship, Vinoth Ramachandra (Anglican lay-theologian, writer, teacher)

 

In the Name of God: Father, Son and Holy Spirit. Amen.

 

We’re heading into allergy season – most of us are affected in some way – and all of us have had sneezing fits . . . we all know something about sneezing.  When I sneeze its always loud, hard and more than once.  I cannot easily sneeze softly or quietly and seldom only once.  The longer and harder I try to ‘hold it off/back’ that harder I eventually sneeze.  Did you know the average sneeze travels at 90-100 MPH! 

 We all know that when we sneeze, that which is sneezed spreads out rapidly and evidently goes quite a distance!  From that the stuff sneezed out might ‘infect’ someone else and soon thereafter they too are sneezing and the process goes on till the virus or allergen dies out or is eliminated. The point is a sneeze spreads all over the place – and – others can be affected. 

 

What would happen if our faith was ‘sneezed out’ in the right conditions, in appropriate relationship – I’d think FAITH would be caught and spread again.  Why is this important?  The answer to that lies in the Gospel story and in particular centers upon the resurrection of Jesus from the dead.  Let me quickly explain:

 

 

It is a historical fact that Jesus Christ was raised bodily from the dead! There has never been a time when the church catholic did not teach and preach that message. (1 Cor. 15.1-11)  The resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead is the lynchpin of Christian faith.  Jesus arose from the dead and God’s New Heaven and New Earth was put into motion – Jesus’ followers have been given a Great Commission and a new work to do! Jesus’ resurrection demonstrates God’s redemptive move to colonize earth with the life of heaven – where His will and authority is on earth as it is in heaven.

 

 

Through Christ, God has set into motion the final overthrow of death itself and the redemption of the world.  By faith and through His word we believe that as Christ died and was raised bodily from the dead, we too will die and one day are raised bodily from the dead. . . but that has a deeper meaning then just living . . . . it’s centered in God’s eternal will and purposes for creation.

 

 

Consider this: About one-half of all the people who ever lived are alive this day. 

 

 

The general resurrection of the dead will see this planet – in what ever form God will transform it – as the new earth/new heaven.  Sin and death and hunger and war and tears will not exist. we will not need sun or moon; the oceans will disappear;  we will have Christ.  This goes beyond our ability to fully grasp what it will be like – but God can.

 

 

If we look at The Beginning in Genesis and then read through to the end of Revelation we see that God has set into motion His eternal decree to redeem and restore us back to the beginning.  In His paradise – His Garden – where we rule with Him – are in intimate relationship with Him and one another – a place where at the end of the day He said IT IS GOOD.

 

 

God is transforming this world. Transformation can seem slow in coming, at times it seems to be going backwards, life can be brutal, even frightening. . . . we see wars, famine, ravaging diseases. . . . economies shake and vitriolic words divide the human race along cultural and racial lines.

 

 

The Bible tells us that when we are IN Christ Jesus, believe Him and in faith trust Him – we become a New Creation.  I would suggest that’s when we already start becoming a Resurrected person. We’ve already died to sin – sin no longer has ultimate control over us – the old has past away and the new has come and IS coming. To follow Christ NOW, in THIS life, means to live as a new creation, under His rule and authority.  We start learning how to live, albeit imperfectly, as resurrected people even before we die and therefore what we do right now has great meaning in the age to come!

 

 

N. T. Wright says, “The Resurrection of Jesus is indeed the foundation for a renewed way of life in and for the world.”   A renewed way of life is simply and profoundly a life in and through Christ signified by faith and obedience to Him. . . . . a life where our propensity for self centered living is replaced with God centered living.  Perhaps the easiest way, and the hardest for us to picture, is found in the Genesis account where God and humanity live in close fellowship. By being a Christ follower we wittingly and unwittingly have committed our selves to continuing the ministry of reconciliation won on the cross and demonstrated by the empty tomb. That’s where the analogy of sneezing comes in because when we visualize what a sneeze is like we actually see the Great Commission in action.

 

 

Our culture is progressively post-Christian – more anti-Christian – more syncretic: where divergent thoughts merge together to make something new. . . . even among Christians there is great disagreement about some of the basics of biblical faith.  I would say as there is at least two generations of latchkey kids in society today, and as we see the huge impact that has on simple things like kindness, decency, honesty, trustworthiness, the Church catholic can no longer assume that people we meet understand even the basic stories of faith.  I also understand that many of you can never remember a time when you were not Christian. 

 

 

There are some of us however who clearly remember ‘coming to Christ’, whether it’s a moment in time or a series of progressive steps to faith . . . . this, I believe is a growing pattern in our society.  Faith does not come by accident – but through prayer, action and God’s Good Grace to help someone come to faith takes action: a sneeze. In his book, The Forgotten Ways, Alan Hirsch suggests that Christ’s example gives us the roadmap to sneezing the gospel as we follow Him. He lays out four steps that all begin with “P”: Presence, Proximity, Powerlessness, and Proclamation.

 

 

Presence: The Bible tells us that God came in the flesh and was and IS fully present to us.  Col. 2.9, John 1.1-15.  For many people that has little meaning.  If that did happen, they think, it has no bearing upon me today. 

 

 

As I ponder my ‘becoming’ a person of faith I remember certain experiences of God that just stuck to me . . . they were vitally important to me. I can remember that at some point I believed God to be real; I also came to realize that He acted in time and space; therefore I had a deep desire - albeit sometimes with great fear and trembling - to experience Him! I didn’t know much about the differences or similarities between the persons of the Trinity – all I knew is that God became real. . . . His realness was a deep spiritual experience for me . . . . knowing God to be present was and is an astounding thing. I was experiencing the Holy in the ordinary for the first time and that deeply affected the way I saw and thought about the everyday things in my life.

 Proximity: I experienced my life in a way that I could see God’s intervention – His correction – His inspiration – and His Love for me. . . . . that has brought me to tears more than once. God was not only present HE WAS CLOSE . . . . . He lives among us.  He lives in proximity to the outcast, the leper, the blind, the broken . . . . Luke 19.10, “For the Son of Man came to seek and to save what was lost." How does He do that?  Through US – as we stand in the midst of the people.  When Olivia and I were first married I was not a Christian . . . . she stood with me, blessed me, loved me and so did others as I began to get my arms around the call to follow after Jesus. Christ’s proximity to me was HIS PEOPLE – friendships that brought faith alive and made it real.

Perhaps the defining moment came in Cursillo where I was cloistered with 80 other men and for the first time saw men deeply care for each other in good and proper ways . . . . . it was an intense four days of wrestling with God, fighting His call, feeling absolutely helpless yet loved.

 

 

I was an infant, yet a 31 year old man whose language and thinking and behavior was often based upon the worlds ideas of strength and power. God became close to me in the flesh and lived among me through HIS PEOPLE.  Flesh. Touch. Words. Laughter. Tears. Love.

 

 

I was driving somewhere in Baltimore City on Friday night trying to get to Camden Yards (long story) and was lost and happened upon a street lined with blocks and blocks of row homes –

Every home had a need, had a story, had a hurt . . . . this is where Christ would have lived!

 

 

Powerlessness: God took the form of a servant.  Phil. 2.5-8, “Your attitude should be the same as that of Christ Jesus: Who, being in very nature God, did not consider equality with God something to be grasped, but made himself nothing, taking the very nature of a servant, being made in human likeness. And being found in appearance as a man, he humbled himself and became obedient to death— even death on a cross!” He demonstrated His power through Love and humility. Many people think of Christianity as rules and do’s and don’ts – many experience Christians as hypocrite’s whose ‘holiness’ is a millimeter deep yet seems to encompass a mile in width.

 

 

Christ Jesus demonstrated a deep compassion and willingness to love and NOT exercise the power He rightfully could use to rule roughshod over people. He spoke and demons fled – sky’s cleared – and food multiplied; to the rich and powerful He spoke the truth in humility often leaving them defeated and dumfounded; To the poor He offered a word of hope. This is the Jesus I have grown to know and Love and follow: More than once I have felt like I needed to take my shoes off because His Holiness fell upon places where we gathered and I often felt like falling on my face.

 

 

I began to ‘see’ the world around me differently – people were different – a simple meal looked different and tasted different. . . . thankfulness and gratitude were introduced into my life which had been for the most part took most things for granted.  This new attitude and heart did not come out of fear and having to follow the rules but out of knowing a Lord whose life was lived in willful powerlessness, and thanksgiving.

 

 

Proclamation: I continue to be taught that God is Holy and Love and Justice and Beauty and awesome power with an immense eternal desire to restore humanity to Himself – I heard sermons and read scripture and listened in small groups that said over and over again that I was His child – I was loved – I had more than once broken God’s heart and in spite of my arrogance and deceit and pride and unruly heart the Holy Spirit showered me with God’s love and eventually opened my heart to receive Him in faith.

 

 

Jesus called out into the darkness of a violent, hate filled world – He called out into the prejudices of man; the idolatry of man; the brokenness of man. Jesus called men and women to repentance and faith – and through His presence, and living among them in proximity, he exercised a powerful ministry of powerlessness that changed thousands for ever.

 

 

The Grace of God changes a person – the Love of God changes a person – the forgiveness of God changes a person.  A changed person – a changing person – is she/he whom  God uses to change others and therefore the creation is renewed by Christ through His Spirit working in Christ followers whose love for God is sneezed out where ever they go!

 

 

I want to leave us all with a clearer understanding that resurrection awaits us when we die BUT since we’re already IN Christ NOW is the time to live IN and THROUGH HIM in the life to come!

 

 

We must understand that our LIFE IS CHRIST which has meaning for everything we say and do. The life of the coming age – which is what eternal life means – is something that we can strive for right now by the grace of God and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit. Carefully look at Romans 8 and Revelation 21 & 22 – with the Day of the Resurrection God is mightily pointing to a redeemed world, and the rebirth of creation.

 

 

Is that just a bunch of syrupy theological words, something that sounds like a nice, sweet, easy fairy tale?  Like telling someone just to be nice or get along with one another? NO, hardly. Listen to the implication of these words:

 Walk in Love as Christ loves us and gave Himself as a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God. Eph.5.2 

 

THIS is how it is in the New Heaven and the New Earth.

 

 

 

 Therefore, I urge you, brothers, in view of God's mercy, to offer your bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God—this is your reasonable act of worship.  Romans 12.1 

 

To offer ourselves as a living sacrifice means to come before God as we are – really are – and give ourselves over to Him: some would say that means our ambitions and futures. I think it also means our secret thoughts; our disappointments; and worst fears - THIS is how it is in the New Heaven and the New Earth.

 

 

 

 

 Therefore, if you are offering your gift at the altar and there remember that your brother has something against you, leave your gift there in front of the altar. First go and be reconciled to your brother; then come and offer your gift.  Matthew 5.23-24 

 

Reconciled means to repair what is broken; make it like it was never broken.  Forgive, be forgiven, live in harmony with one another never letting the sun go down on our anger. Making peace – striving for the best for another person. This is how it is in the New Heaven and the New Earth.

 

 

 

 

 You are worthy, our Lord and God, to receive glory and honor and power, for you created all things, and by your will they were created and have their being. Rev. 4.11. Followers of Christ have hope in Christ.  Life and Life after Life are wrapped up in the mystery of Christ who is making all things New and will one day return – raising us to new life in Him through our bodily resurrection. St Timothy’s has the opportunity to live the resurrected life right now.  To sneeze out the gospel to thousands upon thousands; To live in Christ as fully as we can – through Grace – by Faith – in Peace – restoring this community to the fullness of Christ. 

 

We do it by imitating Christ by being present, living in proximity, exercising strength through powerlessness and speaking the truth in love via proclamation. To say: Alleluia! Christ is Risen!  The Lord is risen indeed! Alleluia! Is a glorious statement of faith and fact.  In it we find our lives hidden in Christ both NOW and in the age to come.  Lets pray. . . .

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