Difference between revisions of "Sermon for May 31st, 2020"

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John 20:19-23

19When it was evening on that day, the first day of the week, and the doors of the house where the disciples had met were locked for fear of the Jews, Jesus came and stood among them and said, “Peace be with you.” 20After he said this, he showed them his hands and his side. Then the disciples rejoiced when they saw the Lord. 21Jesus said to them again, “Peace be with you. As the Father has sent me, so I send you.” 22When he had said this, he breathed on them and said to them, “Receive the Holy Spirit. 23If you forgive the sins of any, they are forgiven them; if you retain the sins of any, they are retained.”

Receive the Holy Spirit

In today's scripture passage, the disciples are gathered in the upper room, and the door is shut. The door is locked. They are afraid to go outside, and who knows how long they've been locked inside the house? This should sound a little bit familiar to us.

So the door is locked, Jesus is about to make his big entrance (post-resurrection), and this is where I think he truly missed a great opportunity: Let me tell you how Jesus *should* have entered the building...

Knock knock. Who's there? Theodore. Theodore Who? Theodore is locked, you wanna open it?

Knock knock. Who's there? Usher. Usher who? Usher wish you would let me in, guys!

Knock knock. Who's there? Hal. Hal who? Hal'll you know unless you open the door and find out?

Knock knock. Who's there? Candice. Candice who? Candice door open, or not?

Knock knock. Who's there? Doris. Doris who? Doris locked, that's why I've been knocking!

Knock knock. Who's there? Ben. Ben who? Ben knocking for a long time now...

Knock knock. Who's there? Howie. Howie who? Howie gonna finish this story if you don't let me in?

Knock knock. Who's there? Dolores. Dolores who? Dolores my shepherd, I shall not want. He maketh me to lie down in green pastures, he restoreth my soul.

Oh, hey Jesus, it's you!!

That would have been epic. Unfortunately, Jesus didn't go that route. Instead he just came straight through the locked door, stood among his friends who up until this point had assumed he was dead, and said "Peace be with you."

In the King James translation, the next verse reads "and the disciples soiled their undergarments and screameth like little girls." I'm just kidding--that's not in the Bible (but I bet that's exactly how it happened).

Today is Pentecost Sunday, the day when we celebrate the coming of the Holy Spirit. The version of the Pentecost story most people are familiar with--the one we just heard from Ms. Marina and the Jesus Storybook Bible comes from the book of Acts. In that version of the story, the Holy Spirit comes 50 days after Jesus ascends into heaven, outside in the marketplace with tongues of fire descending upon the disciples.

But this year we're going with John's version of the story, which is a little more understated, a little more intimate, and the focus is on breath more than on fire. Jesus breathes the Holy Spirit onto his disciples.

Yes, you heard that right. Jesus...breathes...on his disciples. He has recently been out of the country, and now he comes uninvited into a house crowded with people, he does not observe social distancing, and he does the one thing we are trying really hard NOT to do to each other right now, the reason we're all wearing masks whenever we go outside. Because bad, bad things come from breath and breathing...things like viruses that can make you sick and possibly kill you. Way to be an example, Jesus.

Of course, all of this takes place in an entirely different context from ours, where Coronavirus does not yet exist.

In fact, the Greek word for Holy Spirit used in this passage, and anywhere else the Holy Spirit is referred to, is Pneuma (as in Pneumatic tires) which is more literally translated, Holy breath, or holy wind. In the Old Testament, in ancient Hebrew, the word for spirit is ruah, which can also be translated as breath or wind.

This makes sense. To most ancient peoples, breath was life. When you stopped breathing, you were dead. When you breathe in, you take something of the world inside you. When you exhale or breathe out, something leaves you and goes out into the world. Your breath...is your life...is your spirit.

So Jesus, who was dead but now alive again, gives one last gift to his disciples: He breathes on them. He gives them his breath...his life...his spirit.

Just as he had drawn them in at the beginning of his earthly ministry (breathe in) now he sends them out in his name (breathe out). The disciples of Jesus have figuratively become his breath, his life, his spirit. They are exhaled into the world.

And so are we.

1. Graduation season 2. El Pasoans cautiously venturing out into the world again 3.

At Pentecost, Jesus gave the disciples his last gift, his breath, his life, his very spirit. I'm not Jesus, but I'd like to give three pieces of wisdom, three pieces of advice to our confirmands, our missionary, and our graduating seniors--all in the various stages of their faith journeys, of learning and living and going. Really its to all of us, as all of us are somewhere along the path of our own faith journeys, too. It is simple advice, gleaned from today's passage and from Jesus' example.

First: Breathe. Breathe in. Take in the world, take in God's word, take in all the education you can get, both in school and in church. And then breathe out. Give of yourself. Give back to your church, to the world and the people around you, to the world and the nations far away from you, too.

Second: Show your scars. Before Jesus gives his breath, his spirit, he shows his disciples the wounds in his hands and in his side. You'll get wounded too. Being sent out into the world is dangerous business, and you'll come away with scars. Emotional ones, physical ones, spiritual ones. Jesus didn't hide his scars--he shared them with others so they would know that his scars did not defeat him. Neither will yours.

Third: Forgive. This is what follows immediately after he breathes on them and tells them to receive his spirit: He gives them the power to forgive others. This is not a magical power--all of our sins are already forgiven by the great sacrifice that Jesus made. But if we are to follow in his footsteps, to live in his spirit, then we are to forgive others. You'll need to forgive others, because if you don't, he says they will be retained. But that doesn't necessarily mean THEY will retain THEIR sins. I think it means that if you can't forgive someone, you're the one retaining something. That's why we use the expression to "carry" a grudge. If you don't forgive, you end up carrying a lot of weight that will slow you down on your journey. So forgive others, whether they deserve it or not. And none of us do.

That's it: Breathe in, Breathe out. Show your scars. Forgive everyone.

May your journeys be long, and may they take you far. May they be filled with the spirit of God's love, and someday lead you home to his heavenly arms.

Knock knock. Who's there? Ward. Ward who? Ward of God for the people of God. Thanks be to God!