Sunday, April 7, 2024

Second Sunday of Easter
Acts 4:32-35
Psalm 148
1 John 1:1-2:2
John 20:19-31

Praise Yah! Praise Yahweh from the heavens! Praise him in the heights! Praise him, all his angels! Praise him, all his army! Praise him, sun and moon! Praise him, all you shining stars! Praise him, you heavens of heavens, you waters that are above the heavens. Let them praise Yahweh’s name, for he commanded, and they were created.

Most families are different now than they had been in Jesus’ day. We don’t have communal family homes anymore, where generation after generation stays together supporting one another and pooling resources. As a matter of fact, many families do not even stay in the same town. My own family is scattered all over the United States. We have our own homes, our own responsibilities. It made it more difficult for us when our parents were ill, but we managed to find a way to work together. In the days of the early church, families stayed close. A husband moved into the home of his wife’s family. Children grew up under the care of parents and grandparents. Brothers and sisters worked the same fields, shared in the same meals and cousins grew up like siblings. They shared everything.

That’s why it was so hard for those who became Christian. When they chose to follow “the Way” they were cast out of their proudly Jewish families. They had no place to live, no one with whom they could pool their resources. They were alone and unable to support themselves, but the Church became their family. The very few who had material possessions sold them to help those who had nothing. They pooled their resources so that everyone could survive this incredible change in their lives. We don’t live this type of family life, but we see how they dealt with the consequences of their decision to follow Jesus and learn that sharing our resources is the life we are called to live.

Generosity is a way of life for Christians in every age, but it is up to us to learn how to do that in our circumstances. Should we be selling our homes and moving into a compound to share all our resources with other Christians? I do not think that’s what God is calling us to do. The story following our text from Acts is about Ananias and Sapphira who sold their belongings and gave a portion to the disciples to distribute. This was extremely generous, but they claimed they gave the whole amount. They were punished, not for keeping some of the profit, but for lying about giving it all away. Peter said, “Wasn’t it yours to begin with? Why would you lie about it?” Barnabas was able to give the entire prophet from the sale of a field, and he did so out of his heart. Ananias and Sapphira gave what they gave and lied because they wanted the approval of others. We are to give as we are able, not with boasting and self-piety or lies, but with our hearts.

For many communities in America, the conversation this week (with months and years of planning) is about the total solar eclipse on Monday. There have been reports about the expectations. The weather is not cooperating; at least in our area we are expecting cloudy skies. City, county, and state officials are concerned about the influx of millions of people. Most small towns in the eclipse zone are expecting two to three times as many as normal. This means traffic jams, impossible parking, empty store shelves, and questionable cell service. Hotels have been sold out for months, and local businesses are renting parking spots for as much as $100 for a day. Many places have planned watch parties. I’m headed to a ranch for the weekend for a retreat.

I’ve heard several stories about the scientists that have converged on the area to study the effect of the eclipse. The largest community of Mexican Fruit bats live in a cave a few miles form here. There are as many as 30 million bats that sleep in that cave. During summer, the emergence at dusk of these bats during the summer can be seen on weather radar. Chiropterologists are going to converge on the cave to watch how those bats respond to the darkening of the sky. Others will visit a community of bats that lives in Austin to see how they will respond. They are expecting the eclipse to confuse the animals, both wild and domestic, making some begin to settle for the night as if it were dusk and others to begin their nocturnal activities.

This eclipse is causing people to gather in the path, but in ages past eclipses caused confusion and fear. We understand better what is happening, but we also have advantages that they did not have hundreds of years ago. We have electricity and the light bulb, which means we can continue to do our work even when it is dark. I sometimes wonder if this is really an advantage. Instead of going to bed when it is dark, we stay up late into the night. We’ve extended our day which used to be limited by the daylight. Stores can be open twenty-four hours a day. In our world there is no darkness, which for our human bodies means that there is not enough time to rest. In an article from the Washington post by Rob Stein, Najib T. Ayas of the University of British Columbia is quoted as saying, “We’re shifting to a 24-hour-a-day, seven-day-a-week society, and as a result we're increasingly not sleeping like we used to. We’re really only now starting to understand how that is affecting health, and it appears to be significant.”

The scientists expect the eclipse to trick the animals into thinking it is dusk, but the light bulb tricks us into believing that we do not have to sleep. There is light, so we must have time to continue our work, to enjoy our hobbies, to read a good book.

The light bulb tricks us in other ways, too. A well-placed light will provide a certain atmosphere and create an emotional response that other lighting might not be able to produce. Lighting can draw the eye to a certain person or object. This is especially apparent in theater or film, where lighting is used to both emphasize something the directors want you to see and hide the things they do not want you to see. I’ve noticed, also, that lighting is used to make things look better to our eye. Take, for instance, the produce department of your local grocery store. Have you ever noticed the special lighting hanging above the fruits and vegetables? Those lights are designed to make the fruit look better, riper, and more delicious. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve been disappointed by tomatoes that looked great in the store, but not so great when I got them home.

This is not to say, of course, that light is a bad thing. I’m definitely not against the light bulb! I’m as guilty as everyone else of using too many hours every day, working into the night. I probably wouldn’t read very much if it weren’t for the time I spend in the evening with my nose in a good book. But we fool ourselves if we think that the light bulb is miraculous. Our life is not necessarily better than it was hundreds of years ago, before the advent of modern conveniences. It is better in many ways. But what have we lost in the process? I wonder if we’ve lost a sense of the darkness because we have conquered it by our own hands. That’s why millions are converging on a thin line through America.

We need to ask ourselves, though, do we really understand Jesus as the Light of the world, whose light is real and not tricky or manipulative? Or do we rely on our own ability to create light, both physical light and spiritual? We learn through the scriptures that we are not our own, that we belong to God for a purpose. That purpose is to share the light that is Christ.

The light which is Christ is different than the light we use in our world today. It is different even than the natural light of the sun. Christ is the light that overcomes the darkness of the spirit, the darkness of sin and grief. His light is the light the bears all truth, that reveals all that is good, that provides true hope to those who are lost. In His light we see the reality of our life and the world, but we also see the reality of His grace. We see how the created world was meant to be. God did not create the world, or our lives, to be bad. In the beginning, He said “It is good.” Yet, we got lost in the darkness, not only that which is without light, but in the false light we create. In His light we see the truth, confess our sins, and receive the forgiveness which He offers. There, in that Light, we will truly have rest and peace and hope.

I can imagine that the disciples felt they were in the darkness again as they hid in the Upper Room on that first Easter. Our Gospel scripture for today continues the story we began on the day they discovered the resurrection. The disciples were dazed and confused. What happened? Is it true that Jesus rose from the dead? Did the women really see Him? Where is He now? They soon saw Him for themselves.

According to the scriptures, Jesus made twelve appearances after the Resurrection. He appeared to Mary (Mark 16:9; John 20:10-18), the women returning from the tomb (Matthew 28:9-10), the two disciples on the road to Emmaus (Luke 24:13-32; Mark 16:12-13), Peter in Jerusalem. (Luke 24:34; 1 Corinthians 15:5), His disciples except Thomas in the Upper Room (Luke 24:36-43; John 20:19-23), Thomas and the disciples in the Upper Room (John 20:24-29), seven of His disciples on the shore of the Sea of Galilee (John 21:1-24), five hundred believers at one time (1 Corinthians 15:6), James (1 Corinthians 15:7), eleven disciples on a mountain in Galilee (Matthew 28:18-20), along the road to Bethany, on the Mount of Olives before He ascended into Heaven (Luke 24:50-53), and Paul on the road to Damascus. (Acts 9:3-6; 1 Corinthians 15:8). We also know that Jesus spent time with the disciples during the forty days between the Resurrection and Ascension. It is worthwhile reading these texts to see that the witness of these disciples and followers is true. They were witnesses, not only of the great work Jesus did before His death, but of the reality that Jesus didn’t stay dead. He is alive, and those hundreds of people saw it for themselves.

We know about the twelve days of Christmas, but few even realize that Easter continues for eight days. It is called the Octave of Easter and ends this Sunday. Though the holy day is over, and our lives are getting back to normal after the holiday, we need to remember that the disciples were still confused and uncertain about what was happening to them. Jesus had appeared, but were they ready to truly believe? Were they ready to go into the world to tell others about Jesus? We do not hear a true confession of faith until the eighth day when Thomas says, “My Lord and my God.” The eggs may be found, the chocolate eaten and the lilies fading, but Easter continues.

I must confess that I enjoy watching some of the paranormal shows on television. I don’t like them all because some are overly dramatic. I enjoy the ones that use science to prove, or more often to disprove, the claims in the place they are investigating. The good investigators do not go in with preconceived expectations. They really want to find reasonable explanations for the paranormal events. They often have real world skills like plumbing and electrical expertise which helps the client see mechanical or technological answers to some of their questions. Sometimes a cold spot is just a draft. Sometimes a door opening is caused by bad latches and the vacuum affect when another door is opened. Sometimes the creepy feelings are brought on by high electrical fields. Sometimes the faucet is broken, and the water really does just turn on by itself. Odd lights and shadows can be caused by passing cars. One family had a television that turned on by itself. It turned out that the neighbor had a remote that controlled their TV!

The teams do occasionally find evidence of paranormal activity. Even then, they rarely call a place haunted. Some paranormal activity is simply that: not normal. Not all paranormal activity is a spiritual entity. Sometimes it is just energy that has manifested in an unusual way. Sometimes it is simply the imagination of an overactive mind. When we can’t identify something as normal, we are quick to identify it as abnormal and frightening. The claims of paranormal activity in most buildings cause fear to the point that some will not even enter certain rooms, or they are unwilling to live or work in the place.

Despite the times Jesus told His disciples that He had to die so that He could be raised again, and despite the fact that Mary (in John’s version of the story) told them what she had seen and heard at the tomb, the disciples were frightened when Jesus appeared on that first Easter night. It was not normal for a dead man to walk again, or to appear out of nowhere. They were familiar with paranormal activity, because they thought He was a ghost, but it never occurred to them that He might be alive.

In an article on Times Online (UK), N.T. Wright, bishop of Durham, once wrote, “But ‘resurrection’ to 1st-century Jews wasn’t about ‘going to Heaven’: it was about the physically dead being physically alive again. Some Jews (not all) believed that God would do this for all people in the end. Nobody, including Jesus’s followers, was expecting one person to be bodily raised from the dead in the middle of history. The stories of the Resurrection are certainly not ‘wish-fulfilments’ or the result of what dodgy social science calls ‘cognitive dissonance’. First-century Jews who followed would-be messiahs knew that if your leader got killed by the authorities, it meant you had backed the wrong man. You then had a choice: give up the revolution or get yourself a new leader. Going around saying that he’d been raised from the dead wasn’t an option.”

There was another answer to the question of what they were seeing that day in the Upper Room that first night: Jesus was alive. But it didn’t make sense to them right away. They were afraid because what they were seeing could not be real. Jesus answered their fear and gave them the proof they needed to know that what they were seeing was true. Jesus was alive! Unfortunately, Thomas was not with them when Jesus appeared. So, just as the “Ghost Hunters” team does not believe until they see and experience it for themselves, Thomas could not believe until he received the same proof as the other disciples.

Thomas needed to see the risen Christ for himself. From that moment, Thomas was pinned with the name “Doubting Thomas” because he doubted what they saw. Perhaps he should have believed, after all there were plenty of reasons given to the disciples before that moment when Jesus came to them in the Upper Room. Jesus’ own words should have given them peace in the aftermath of the crucifixion. It took them time to fully grasp the reality of their experience with Jesus. As a matter of fact, even after appearing to them in the flesh, Jesus stayed among them for forty days to continue to teach them (again) all they needed to know to go into the world and do the work He was calling them to do. The faithful and faith-filled life does not happen overnight. It is an ongoing life of growing and maturing.

And while “Doubting Thomas” was not willing to believe until he had physical proof, he is also “Confessing Thomas” because as soon as he saw Jesus he cried, “My Lord and my God.” He not only believed that Jesus was alive, but he also believed that Jesus was who and what He said He was. Jesus was not only their friend and teacher. He was not simply a man who lived and died like all other men. He was Lord and God. Man and God. Human and Divine. This is an important confession of faith and the foundation of all we believe as Christians.

Peter gave a similar confession when he said, “You are the Christ, the Son of the Living God.” Jesus replied that this was not something that Peter could know on his own. It was by the power of the Holy Spirit that he could confess this faith. Thomas has long been characterized by his doubt, but rarely remembered for his confession. I suppose that it is Jesus’ reply to Thomas’ doubt that makes us think that way. After all, when Jesus saw Thomas during that second appearance, He said, “Be not faithless, but believing.” But Jesus still showed Thomas His hands and side. Jesus understands our doubts and He reaches out to us so that we might see the truth. Thomas did see the truth and said so.

The light continues to shine through the church, beginning with Thomas’ confession of faith. Since that first Easter week, the Church has passed on the knowledge and experience of Christ in the world through the record of Jesus’ life from the apostolic witness in the scriptures and the traditions of the Church. The lives of the Saints who did great acts of faithfulness and taught us all we know about Jesus. Our own experiences of God touch our lives with His grace. We weren’t there during that first Easter week but have all this to help us know that Jesus is real and that His grace is transforming our lives and the world. We are those about whom Jesus said, “Blessed are those who have not seen, and have believed.”

Jesus breathes on us and gives us the faith to believe based on their witness and His Word rather than on proof. Though we cannot experience the flesh of Jesus as they did, we can believe their words. The Resurrection was real, physical, and according to the promises in the scriptures. To reduce it to something less diminishes the witness of Peter, John, and the others. It also diminishes Jesus because He fulfilled everything that was promised by God through the Old Testament prophets. It all may seem ridiculous and impossible, but the story of Jesus’ ministry, Good Friday, Easter, and Eternity is as God intended. Jesus lived, died, and rose again by God’s hand and according to God’s plan so that we will live in joy forever.

John tells us that “Therefore Jesus did many other signs in the presence of his disciples, which are not written in this book; but these are written, that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that believing you may have life in his name.” There was no way for one man to record the whole life and ministry of Jesus. There was no way for the disciples to write down everything Jesus did for us to read. By their words, however, we know that we’ve been given a glimmer of His life. They were blessed to live with Him, to work with Him, to learn under His teaching. We have what they were able to pass down, built on the foundation of John’s confession of faith. It is no wonder, then, that there are those in our world today who doubt. Jesus says, “Don’t be unbelieving, but believing.” It is hard, but we can help by being the witnesses God has called to share His grace and His light in this dark world so that those who need more than words can see. Through our lives and actions, in our faith and generosity, they will see that He truly lives.

Sunday, April 7th is the eighth day. It is the first day of the rest of our lives. By faith we dwell in the eighth day always. While the earth still turns and the sun still rises, we no longer live in darkness. Sometimes, like on the day of the eclipse, it seems like darkness can overtake the light. This might cause confusion and fear, but we need not be afraid. We don’t need a lightbulb to bring light to the darkness of this world. We live in the light because the Light is Christ. He lives so that we might have life. He shines through us to overcome the darkness that is caused by sin and death. We no longer need to fear because Jesus overcame them both for our sake. We dwell in eternity in the here and now even while we wait for eternity in the future.

This life does not come to us by physical proofs, but from the faith that God is faithful to His promises. As we dwell in this reality, Jesus fills us with faith that overflows into the lives of others through our words and the generosity that makes a difference in their lives. We are called together to be the body of Christ in the here and now as we wait until the day when we will all be joined in eternal praise and thanksgiving to the God who is victorious over sin and death. We are blessed to be a blessing, to give of our blessings from our hearts.

As we make our own confession of faith, like John, we do so with the joy of the eighth day. We are Easter people, and every day is a day of joy. The psalmist knew that even though we experience the most terrifying things of the earth like the darkness of an eclipse and the most mundane aspects of life like light bulbs, there is reason to sing. We can join in the psalmist’s song to praise God and give Him thanks.