John
3:14-21
Love
the Darkness
There is a section of C.S. Lewis’
popular book Mere Christianity in
which he argues against folks who want to make of Jesus a good, moral
teacher. Lewis points out that Jesus
does not qualify for such a designation.
You either have to be a follower of Jesus, or be honest enough to admit
that he was at best a liar or at worst a flaming lunatic.
Jesus said he was the Son of
God. And every one of his so-called moral
teachings emerges from this identity. While
it is possible that lunatics or liars can say some truthful or helpful things –
you would not want to name them as an example of what we all ought to be.
So, stage one in this morning’s
homily is establishing a baseline for whether we will identify Jesus as
Messiah/Son of God – or if we are more inclined to put him in those uncharitable
categories named by Mr. Lewis. Tilt your
head one way or the other – so I can get a feel for how the rest of this is
going to go. Jesus is who he says he is
- - - Jesus maybe ought to be relegated to the margins.
Claiming to be God’s Son isn’t the only
outrageous thing that Jesus says. Look at
this morning’s reading from the 3rd chapter of John. Verse references are omitted, so let’s look
by lines. Go to line 4, the very last
word, and read that phrase: “and
people loved darkness rather than light.”
Which way did you tilt your
head? Does this statement by Jesus sound
rational/reasonable? WHO? would love darkness over
light? Is Jesus a liar? A lunatic?
Perhaps you didn’t stop reading
where I did. Maybe you remember the rest
of the verse or sentence. Jesus says
they preferred darkness because their deeds were evil. And we might naturally assume that “evil
people” would shun the light and remain in the shadows. Jesus doesn’t seem so prone to exaggeration
or lunacy when we heard his words as a call to discipleship.
Or does he?
Let’s remember what Jesus’ call to
discipleship is about. Let’s not forget
the liturgical season in which we find ourselves and that Good Friday and Golgotha
are the destinations upon which Jesus has set his sights.
This great and respected moral
teacher said that his disciples are those who abandon mother and father and
follow. This highly regarded motivational
speaker once said that if you have two coats you are to keep one and give the
other one away. This lunatic said that
the only way to save one’s life is to sacrifice it.
The only time Jesus’ words don’t
sound like a lie or the rantings of a severely disturbed mental patient are
when we strip his words of their bite and refashion them into pretty little
phrases suitable for posters we can tape to the wall.
I do regret, every time I sense that
a sermon is turning angry or accusative.
Usually, I write such sermons Saturday and then wimp out on Sunday
morning when I look at the faces of the lost and lonely little lambs who have
come in hopes of a ray of good news. I
want to say nice things, I really do. And
I will.
Look again at our Gospel
reading. John 3:16 is perhaps the most
popular of all biblical verses. And John
3:16 is the ultimate ray of hope and good news.
God does so love the world, that he gave his only Son. So that everyone who believes in him may not
perish but have eternal life.
It is very unfortunate – extremely unfortunate
– that the second half of that sentence is too often interpreted as a
condition. This good news comes our way IF we meet whatever definition the
interpreter gives to what it means to believe.
But keep on reading. Jesus says that the Son does not come into
the world to condemn, but to save. These
verses to do speak of a God cruel enough to dangle something before our eyes
and then point out why we can’t have it.
It is a statement of a reversal of what humans have eventually done with
every religious tradition. It is a statement
which destroys the attempts to recast God as a vengeful hater of the very ones
whom he has created. “For God so loved
the world….”
Then comes this tricky part, where
we find that reference to people loving darkness rather than light. This tricky part is confusing, and it goes contrary
to so much of what we are accustomed to hearing that we forget this part or
dismiss it or overlook it.
I prefer translations of the bible
which are literal – meaning they don’t clean up the language for us. But a paraphrase of these verses might be
helpful. Isn’t Jesus saying that condemnation
comes to those would rather trust in their own world-view than embrace the way
of the Son? Are not these verses almost
a tearful acknowledgement that the way to salvation and eternal life and happy
life is right before us – but we still tend to choose a different path.
Which way did you tilt your
head? Are you inclined to think of Jesus
as who he says he is? Or would you
rather relegate him to the margins?
Jesus did say – If you have two
coats give one away. There weren’t IRA’s
or Pension Plans or 501(k)’s in his day, but if they had existed I think we all
know what Jesus might have said.
Which way did you tilt your
head? Jesus speaks roughly to the
Gentile woman who asked for her daughter to be healed, but then goes on to
admire her faith. He tells an adulteress
things he won’t say plainly to the religious leaders in the Temple.
We don’t need to ask what Jesus
would do - we know what he would do -when faced with protecting himself or
potentially harming another.
The judgement does not come from on
high to descend upon us. “This is the
judgement, that the light has come into the world, and people loved darkness
rather than light because their deeds were evil. For all who do evil hate the light and do not
come to the light, so that their deeds may not be exposed. But those who do what is true come to the
light, so that it may be clearly seen that their deeds have been done in God.”
Amen.
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