WESTMINSTER PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH
March 30th 2008
Easter Season
Rev. Mark R. Bradshaw-Miller
“Faith without Fear”
John 20:19-31
Of what are you afraid? Fear is instinctual and it is a powerful motivator. After all, there are many things which bring about fear. Some of the larger fears today are things like: Global warming, failed banks, falling housing prices, recession, increased violence in Iraq and Afghanistan. On a local level there is fear of rising waters, crime in our neighborhoods, personal health concerns, and even the future of our own community. Because of the many real fears in our lives when the peddlers of fear come knocking on our door it is easy to be wound up, caught up, and even act up out of our fears.
Acting from the places of our fears actually puts us in good company. On the first Easter, after hearing Mary Magdalene proclaim: “I have seen the Lord,” the disciples choose to hide out in a locked room. They act out of fear. Despite the testimony of Mary, the disciples do not go out and share the story. Instead, they run and hide.
In the text, it says that the disciples hide because they fear the Jews. This does not mean they feared all Jewish people. After all, the disciples were Jewish. Instead, it was a reference to the religious leadership which had colluded with Rome to protect their power. Their fear was real and justified given the religious leadership willingness to work with the occupiers of their homeland.
The actions of the religious leaders stand in stark contrast to Jesus. It was the religious leadership who warned that Jesus was a dangerous radical that needed to be sacrificed for the good of all. It was the religious leadership who used the very real fears about Rome to insure their place in the power structure. But when Jesus shows up in the presence of the disciples he simply says: “Peace be with you.”
Instead of standing with the peddlers of fear, Jesus does not knock on the door, he simply enters. His words of peace are followed with a concrete symbol of hope in an unsettling time. Jesus shows the disciples his scars. Sharing his scars gives credibility to his words at a time when it is desperately needed. The words of Thomas show how needed they were. After hearing Mary’s witness: “I have seen the Lord!” and the witness of the other disciples: “We have see the Lord!” all Thomas can muster is: until I can put my hands in his side and finger in the holes I will not believe.
Jesus’ responds to Thomas’ skeptical voice is a message for the disciples in all ages. The resurrection appearances in John are meant to teach the church how to live as disciples following the resurrection. In other words, that includes us. Jesus encounter with Thomas shows us how to engage the voices of Thomas in ourselves and in the world today.
Jesus begins both encounters by sharing his scars. But we don’t have the resurrected body of Jesus around to touch. So, what are we to do? I believe this passage teaches the community that part of our practice is that of sharing our scars.
It is no accident that after the resurrection Jesus still bears the scars of the cross. Jesus may live again but the wounds of his life do not disappear. Likewise, we who follow Jesus cannot expect that the scars we bear will disappear. In fact, it is often the broken places of our lives which have brought us to faith or to deeper faith. The scars remind us that while healing may come that our lives will never go back to the way things were. But the good news is that we do not remain broken.
Some of the scars in our lives are visible while others, more often than not, are buried behind a smile. I believe that Jesus’ showing of his scars to the community and to Thomas is an action meant to teach the community of followers an important lesson. That lesson is this: A community of faith which hides or ignores the scars is not a healthy and authentic community of Jesus’ followers. It is a bold statement but I believe it is in our scars that we learn some of life’s most important lessons. In Jesus’ scars the disciples have a visible reminder of the pain, hurt, and tears. But those scars also remind us that the pain, hurt, and tears do not have the last word. When we share our scars, the places of healing in our lives and community, we become living witnesses to the healing and new life possible in Jesus.
When Jesus shows up, preaching peace and showing scars the implications are clear for the community of faith. At the heart of the Easter story is the simple message that there is no room for fear in our faith. Fear is toxic to the community of faith. Acting out of fear will lead the people of faith to lock themselves behind closed doors and forces smiles. Acting out of fear will close us in ourselves instead of being a community where people who proclaim as living and yes even scarred, witnesses saying: “We have seen the Lord.”
At this table we proclaim a message of healing and hope. It is a credible remembrance because it remembers the pain and the suffering which lead to the resurrection. We are formed into the people of God through acts like communion. At this gathering, we are reminded that the hope we have in Jesus is not a cheap hope but a hope forged in the pain and death of the resurrection. Peace, not fear is the message of our faith. This is the calling of our faith. This is the calling of our lives. Amen.
March 30th 2008
Easter Season
Rev. Mark R. Bradshaw-Miller
“Faith without Fear”
John 20:19-31
Of what are you afraid? Fear is instinctual and it is a powerful motivator. After all, there are many things which bring about fear. Some of the larger fears today are things like: Global warming, failed banks, falling housing prices, recession, increased violence in Iraq and Afghanistan. On a local level there is fear of rising waters, crime in our neighborhoods, personal health concerns, and even the future of our own community. Because of the many real fears in our lives when the peddlers of fear come knocking on our door it is easy to be wound up, caught up, and even act up out of our fears.
Acting from the places of our fears actually puts us in good company. On the first Easter, after hearing Mary Magdalene proclaim: “I have seen the Lord,” the disciples choose to hide out in a locked room. They act out of fear. Despite the testimony of Mary, the disciples do not go out and share the story. Instead, they run and hide.
In the text, it says that the disciples hide because they fear the Jews. This does not mean they feared all Jewish people. After all, the disciples were Jewish. Instead, it was a reference to the religious leadership which had colluded with Rome to protect their power. Their fear was real and justified given the religious leadership willingness to work with the occupiers of their homeland.
The actions of the religious leaders stand in stark contrast to Jesus. It was the religious leadership who warned that Jesus was a dangerous radical that needed to be sacrificed for the good of all. It was the religious leadership who used the very real fears about Rome to insure their place in the power structure. But when Jesus shows up in the presence of the disciples he simply says: “Peace be with you.”
Instead of standing with the peddlers of fear, Jesus does not knock on the door, he simply enters. His words of peace are followed with a concrete symbol of hope in an unsettling time. Jesus shows the disciples his scars. Sharing his scars gives credibility to his words at a time when it is desperately needed. The words of Thomas show how needed they were. After hearing Mary’s witness: “I have seen the Lord!” and the witness of the other disciples: “We have see the Lord!” all Thomas can muster is: until I can put my hands in his side and finger in the holes I will not believe.
Jesus’ responds to Thomas’ skeptical voice is a message for the disciples in all ages. The resurrection appearances in John are meant to teach the church how to live as disciples following the resurrection. In other words, that includes us. Jesus encounter with Thomas shows us how to engage the voices of Thomas in ourselves and in the world today.
Jesus begins both encounters by sharing his scars. But we don’t have the resurrected body of Jesus around to touch. So, what are we to do? I believe this passage teaches the community that part of our practice is that of sharing our scars.
It is no accident that after the resurrection Jesus still bears the scars of the cross. Jesus may live again but the wounds of his life do not disappear. Likewise, we who follow Jesus cannot expect that the scars we bear will disappear. In fact, it is often the broken places of our lives which have brought us to faith or to deeper faith. The scars remind us that while healing may come that our lives will never go back to the way things were. But the good news is that we do not remain broken.
Some of the scars in our lives are visible while others, more often than not, are buried behind a smile. I believe that Jesus’ showing of his scars to the community and to Thomas is an action meant to teach the community of followers an important lesson. That lesson is this: A community of faith which hides or ignores the scars is not a healthy and authentic community of Jesus’ followers. It is a bold statement but I believe it is in our scars that we learn some of life’s most important lessons. In Jesus’ scars the disciples have a visible reminder of the pain, hurt, and tears. But those scars also remind us that the pain, hurt, and tears do not have the last word. When we share our scars, the places of healing in our lives and community, we become living witnesses to the healing and new life possible in Jesus.
When Jesus shows up, preaching peace and showing scars the implications are clear for the community of faith. At the heart of the Easter story is the simple message that there is no room for fear in our faith. Fear is toxic to the community of faith. Acting out of fear will lead the people of faith to lock themselves behind closed doors and forces smiles. Acting out of fear will close us in ourselves instead of being a community where people who proclaim as living and yes even scarred, witnesses saying: “We have seen the Lord.”
At this table we proclaim a message of healing and hope. It is a credible remembrance because it remembers the pain and the suffering which lead to the resurrection. We are formed into the people of God through acts like communion. At this gathering, we are reminded that the hope we have in Jesus is not a cheap hope but a hope forged in the pain and death of the resurrection. Peace, not fear is the message of our faith. This is the calling of our faith. This is the calling of our lives. Amen.
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