Beyond a Wish and a Prayer To HOPE
ALL SAINTS SUNDAY, November 3, 2013
Ephesians 1:3-23 with Luke 6:20-31 in the b.g.
Do you have any hope? I want to ask you that again in a different way – when you hope, what is your hope based upon?
I ask because some people ask, "Why hope at all?" After all, if we don't hope, if we don't allow ourselves to trust, to envision something, some possibilities beyond what is, we may never be disappointed. But I would counter – if we don't hope at all, if we don't trust beyond ourselves, envision something beyond what is, or what we think possible – if we simply accept reality the way it is to our eyes and ears and laws, do we have any purpose, any meaning, any direction that stands the test of time? Without purpose, without meaning, without direction, all we have are experiences, experiences which may be wonderful as they arrive but which then vanish. Make no mistake – experience in and of itself can be filled with wonder. Or, experience can be filled with horror. If there is nothing, linking the experiences, nothing before and after the experiences giving them purpose or meaning to the middle of our lives and beyond our lives, then the experiences become like so many dreams that occur in our sleep. We have them but then they are gone. Such dreams may inform us. Or, they may confuse us. One way this night. Another way the next night. Some philosophers have hypothesized, is life itself only a dream. They even ask, "how can we collectively pinch ourselves?" But I suspect they ask this because they do not experience, know hope.
But once we are caught by hope, we begin to see that there is One who cares about, wills to guide our waking, sleeping, working and playing, even our dreaming and visions. Then all experiences confusing though they may sometimes be, are linked, can have some meaning for us. Caught by hope, our lives take on purpose, meaning, both here and now and beyond the here and now. For hope that is true has depth and interfaces with all reality including suffering, pain, death, loss, deliverance, fulfillment, new beginnings and endings. With such hope all reality can be embraced with courage and eventually peace.
The community to which the letter of Ephesians was addressed was experiencing real struggle. They lived in a culture which demanded that they think particular ways and give their allegiance to the empire that dominated the known world. People were valued only for what they contributed to the Empire – militarily, working wise. If these people were to actually trust Jesus – to seek to live His way where all had value and dignity – well the cost would be high. They could lose their family, their friends, their positions in the wider community. The unmitigated pursuit of advantage for oneself even at the expense of others was also inherent in the cultures values. So, why would anyone put their trust, their hope in One who had been killed and who called them to think and act on behalf of others, with others, especially those most hurting or vulnerable? Why not take care of yourself? (Pause)
Is life any different for us where we live? Do we even know that hope is different than wishing or wanting? Our culture continually confronts us with what are portrayed a different "hopes". There is the hope of the casino, the various lotteries. These signs are everywhere. And people place at least some trust in them as the jackpot grows and grows and grows. Hey, YOU NEVER KNOW? The implication of such "hope" if that if we could just have some more money or a lot more money, things would be so much better in our lives. We would be OK or even GREAT! But would we? There is a partial truth here – we don't live by "bread" alone – but some bread, some income is necessary for the basics of life – shelter, food, clothing. I mean even Jesus taught us to pray for our daily bread. But we were praying that God may help us with this, not a lottery taken from other people – many of whom cannot afford lottery tickets or who have problems gambling.
Our culture also presents us with the "hope" of technology. If we can just live a little longer we may well have discovered everything we need to know about cancer or Parkinson's disease, heart disease, pollution, drug addiction, obesity, anorexia, STD's – well the list is almost endless. Again, there is an element of truth here. Technology can be used for wonder-filled endeavors. God has gifted us with minds that are LITERALLY AMAZING.
Radiation and chemotherapy are being used to treat cancer – often successfully. New medications are being developed to limit the speed of progressions of Parkinson's disease. Exercise and diet may hinder the progress and frequency of heart diseasase. There are even drugs that curb the desire for drugs that are more destructive and more addictive to we people.
But technology is and can also be used for destructive purposes. Radiation can kill. The results of fusion and fission can be exploded on entire populations wreaking almost eternal havoc. Witness Nagasaki, Hiroshima. Addictive drugs can be sold and peddled for profit at untold cost to human life and community. Talk to your friends – take a trip down East Hastings street. Even though we know so much of what we can do to lessen the progression of heart disease through exercise and diet, whether or not engage in such discipline is quite another matter. Our human hearts and minds, regardless of what we know is right or good, decides on whether or we will do that which is good and right with technology and personal practices.
So, let me ask again, what is our hope?
The letter to the Ephesians offers a prayer: that those Christians would grow in their knowledge of God – and clearly view THEIR HOPE. For the author of the letter to the Ephesians it is crystal clear that the hope of all humanity and all creation is God, and God alone. It is God who creates them and us. It is God who loves them and us. Yes, I said loves, cares about, provides for, offers opportunity to live and not just exist, to forgive and let go, to love and be loved unconditionally. God enters fully into their and our reality: darkness and light, hatred and jealousy, generosity and greed, working for the good of others. God's entry into all of this becomes clear as God becomes human in Jesus. In God is our hope. This is the hope to which our lives are to be oriented. This is the hope to which we are called.
So, let us ask ourselves again. Do we actually live with hope? If so, in whom or what do we hope?
We need to honestly realize that the forces we battle against: hatred, jealousy, greed, even the power of death are not just somehow "out there". They are also "in here" – inside of us – you and me – within this community also. Such forces can drive us to fear, where we think and feel that we have to get more to be OK, to experience "security". This fear strikes even when our closets are full – or we have more than enough to eat.
Dear people, we need to realize that our lives don't depend on us. If they did, would any of us have been born? I am incapable of consistently striking a nail straight, of frequently being able to "clear" the photocopier when it is jammed. Each of us, all of us have limitations. I can't prolong even for one second the life of any person I deeply love. We must know, our lives don't depend on ourselves.
Rather, our lives depend on God. With inestimable love and incomprehensible vision, God creates us, all of creation, plants and animals, air and water - the entire universe: all people of all times and all places. Can we not begin to see: our hope must be in God! Will we then strive to grow in not just knowing about God – but knowing God? God loves us so!
This doesn't mean that we don't have responsibility. In fact, the opposite is true. We are called to live with hope in God seeking God's ongoing guidance and direction for our relationships with each other and with creation. With such hope we can be freed to live and to die, to give and to receive, to dream of and work for new possibilities in congruence with God's good and gracious will for all.
This is to be our hope. Such hope flows from the heart and mind of God. Miraculously such hope is incarnate in and through flawed, broken and wonderful people - like you and me. Such hope can transform reality, here, now and forever. Such hope leads us beyond obsession with ourselves, beyond apathy and despair to actually helping others, feeding the hungry, listening to God in the voices and lives of others and yes often having our minds changed.
Such is the life and hope of any who would be grasped by this God who dares to become incarnate. May this be our life and hope, the stuff of our living and breathing, for Christ's sake. Amen.