New life and 9-11
25th Sunday after Pentecost, November 14, 2010 (Luke 21:5-19
I wonder if any of you ever visited the World Trade Center in New York Center before 9-11? I am told that those buildings were magnificent – post-modern architectural marvels. And then tragically, they were no more – in an instant and in those succeeding hours after those instants.
I wonder if any of you have ever been to the Wailing Wall in Jerusalem? It is a remnant of the Third Temple. Even today, over 2000 years after its construction, it's form is impressive. I suspect that the people present on the day that Jesus was speaking about the demise of the Temple, thought that he may have been losing it. Nevertheless within thirty years, that Great Temple was no more.
Lastly, I wonder how many of you visited or were caught up by the divisions of the Berlin Wall? At its height (pun intended) who would have ever guessed that oh so suddenly it would come down. Following the Berlin's Wall collapse people could once again travel freely within Germany, even within the far flung posts of Russia and the Baltic States/
Things can change – sometimes in an instant, in the twinkling of an eye. Even things that we think will never change – or that we can't imagine living without. In the 1950's in North America church buildings were being constructed at a rapid pace much like the strip malls and shopping malls of the 70's, 80's and 90's. But today many of those church buildings are nearly empty or have been made over to coffee houses. They are seemingly broken down remnants of a past age.
Many institutions once taken for granted as the status quo now have questionable futures: newspapers, post offices, gas guzzling automobiles, publishing houses. Additional items for such a list is much longer than the mind could contemplate in the limited time allotted for today's sermon.
Brilliant scientists now tell us that there is an imaginable end for the earth, the sun, and even the universe itself. I am not sure about you but for me, a child who grew up in the late 50's and 60's, this is mind boggling. In my formative years there was a mixture of optimism and pessimism but overall a general belief that if we just worked hard everything would be alright.
Followers of Jesus are ever tempted to buy into the cultural belief system, whatever it is. Jesus lives in the midst of his culture and yet is able to see through it's false assumptions and convictions. In today's Gospel he tells any who will hear, that wars and rumours of wars, earthquakes, pestilences and "signs in the heavens" will continue to happen. And so they have before and after his death, for nearly 2000 years since he made such a statement. Some people claim that these things are increasing in frequency. It is very difficult to know the accuracy of such a statement, because what is happening is that our awareness (at least in terms of news) of what is happening around us and in the world, has expanded exponentially from what it was 70 years ago or 50 years ago or even 10 years ago. Today people take pictures of what is happening on their iphones. These pictures can enter the public domain in a heartbeat. Regardless of our awareness of "news" the calamitous and horrendous acts of war continue on unabated. Given all this, what are we to do, to be?
As would be followers of Jesus, Jesus calls us to be very clear about whom and what we are trusting. It is tempting, apparently even easy to put our ultimate trust in those things and even in those people whom we deem to be rock solid. But the market can and does crumble. Government policies change at an election or at the whim of a leader. Our own personal health, physically, emotionally and spiritually can be very fragile.
Jesus speaks truth. He tells his early followers that following him is anything but easy. Other family members may not agree, may not want their loyalty to be tied to him and all that following him means. They may not want to have an open house, an open heart, an open wallet. And so, many of his followers will be betrayed or shunned.
The temptation then for those followers of Jesus – the temptation now for us is to take the path of least resistance, to not ruffle the waters, to not say anything or do anything that will cause conflict. But when we take this path of least resistance, we can and do so easily lose our way. If Jesus is not Lord, the Son of God who overcomes the powers of evil and death for all people and all creation, is there anyone or anything that can?
Oh people, Jesus loves us so. How can we lose sight of Him and His love? And yet, so often we do. Then the "Temple" is destroyed as we lose our shirts, our health, our hope in someone else or something else. We may be driven to despair.
But even then God is still God. Jesus is the Son of God who wills to reach out to us. And God's reign, God's kingdom where the lion will lie down with the lamb is still coming, not because we can see it or comprehend it or accomplish it, but because God promises it will be so. Could any of us see the fall of the Berlin Wall even two days before it fell?
So, be ready – not filled with terror or by plotting how we will somehow be "in" while others will be "out". That is so selfish, so contrary to the love of God in Jesus Christ. Instead, by God's grace, may we be ready by trusting in Jesus, by listening for and talking with him daily. The Spirit of God can and will give us direction. We are not alone. Remember, God loves this world.
As St. Paul says in his letter to the Romans, "For I am convinced that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers, nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord."
May we so trust and live from that love and mercy of God in Christ Jesus our Lord. Amen.