John 17:1-11

Jesus, raising his eyes in prayer, said:

“Father, it’s time. Display the bright splendor of your Son so the Son in turn may show your bright splendor. You put him in charge of everything human so he might give real and eternal life to all in his charge.

And this is the real and eternal life:
That they know you,
The one and only true God,
And Jesus Christ, whom you sent.

I glorified you on earth by completing down to the last detail what you assigned me to do. And now, Father, glorify me with your very own splendor, the very splendor I had in your presence before there was a world.

I spelled out your character in detail to the men and women you gave me. They were yours in the first place; then you gave them to me, and they have now done what you said. They know now, beyond the shadow of a doubt, that everything you gave me is firsthand from you, for the message you gave me, I gave them; and they took it, and were convinced that I came from you. They believed that you sent me.

I pray for them. I’m not praying for the God-rejecting world but for those you gave me, for they are yours by right. Everything mine is yours, and yours mine, and my life is on display in them. For I’m no longer going to be visible in the world; they’ll continue in the world while I return to you.

Holy Father, guard them as they pursue this life that you conferred as a gift through me, so they can be one heart and mind as we are one heart and mind.”

What was Jesus doing?

That might seem like a basic and elementary question but it’s one of the most important questions Jesus-followers can ask. What, exactly, was Jesus doing?

In today’s gospel Jesus tells us exactly what he was doing. He was giving “real and eternal life to all in his charge.” (And since, in the sentence immediately preceding, Jesus claimed he has charge of everyone, that means he was giving real and eternal life to everyone.)

Jesus has given us real and eternal life! That’s great news! But it’s great news in the same way that it’s great news to hear someone tell us “You’ve won a prize.” Our initial excitement and dopamine rush gives way to the important second question: “What prize? What, exactly did I win?”

What, exactly, is real and eternal life?

Jesus answers simply: real and eternal life is that you know the one and only true God, and Jesus Christ, the one sent by God.

To know God is to enjoy real and eternal life. The entirety of Jesus’ earthly purpose was to help us to know God.

Every insight about the kingdom of Heaven,

every overturned temple market table,

every parable about seeds and lost things,

every physical healing,

every social norm broken,

every jug of water turned to wine,

every prayer to the Father,

every endured lash and drop of blood,

every promise of forgiveness…

...everything Jesus said and did was a reflection of the true nature and identity of the divine.

What was Jesus doing? He was showing us that the world is in the hands of a God who is actively, competently, and compassionately caring for all creation.

In studying the works of philosopher Dallas Willard I encountered a claim of his that, to be frank, I found offensive. He claims “The world is a perfectly safe place for us to be; and if we place ourselves in God’s care, no harm can come to us.” (The Divine Conspiracy by Dallas Willard).

Maybe that suggestion rubs you the wrong way also. I mean, it’s not even safe for us to gather in our church building.

Dallas Willard follows his provocative phrase with some important nuance. He says harm is different from hurt and clarifies that Christ-followers are not immune to the pain and suffering that exists in this world; however, this pain and suffering are not from God and they will do nothing to negate God’s promises of ultimate grace, love, hope, and peace. This is simply a reinforcement of the scriptural promise of Romans 8:39 that there is nothing in the world that can separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus.

Jesus believed that the world was a perfectly safe place for him. He had faith that he lived in God’s care and he was never in harm’s way. Pain and suffering? Yes, he felt that in abundance as he navigated the landmines of human sin, greed, fear, and lust for power. Yet, through it all, he was able to see that God was in control, believe that he was loved, and be so filled with God’s grace that he could share it with everyone.

Jesus’ earthly purpose was to help us to know God. We can know God by looking to and emulating our teacher, Jesus. We can live the same life that Jesus lived; we can have Jesus’ faith, Jesus’ assurance, and Jesus’ love.

At this point I think a sermon illustration is in order. Now, I need to offer a word of caution up front. I was taught in preaching classes to be careful about sermon illustrations because they can easily take over the sermon and be the only thing people remember.

I am about to show you something and I don’t want this to be the only thing you remember about my message this morning. I hope that you will remember both the illustration and the larger point about how we can look to Jesus to know about God and to trust that the world is a perfectly safe place for us to be.

This is Obi, our new puppy.

Obi is two months old and has been a part of our family for two days now. In the weeks leading up to getting Obi I read a dog training book about positive reinforcement (Training the Best Dog Ever by Larry Kay and Dawn Sylvia-Stasiewicz) and came across a few sentences that struck me as beautiful theological insights. The authors, write,

“...the bottom line is that a dog is a living, breathing creation of God that desires love and security.”

“A well-trained dog that is truly connected to his owner will feel happy and safe, and have more success in our human world.”

“Good leaders don’t have to act like bullies to command respect–not in the human world or in the dog pack. Pet dogs don’t need to be bullied to become your loyal follower. Pet dogs love to follow leaders who provide food, shelter, and safety; leaders they see as benevolent and fair.”

By virtue of nothing other than his being a creation of God, Obi deserves to feel happy, safe, and successful. The way he will feel happy, safe, and successful is if his human family meets his needs and acts benevolent and fair. If he feels loved and safe, then we will have done our jobs as his dog-parents.

Everything we do in our training regimen is an attempt to reinforce the idea for Obi that his world is a perfectly safe place for him to be. We cannot promise Obi that his life will be free from pain. At some point in his life he will experience hurt; but we can promise him that we will do everything we can to make him feel loved and safe.

My friends, allow yourselves for a minute to think of yourselves gazing upon your master (the way, hopefully, Obi will learn to look at me). Gaze upon your master who promises that you are loved and safe. This master provides your food, shelter and safety. This master is benevolent and fair. You feel happy, safe, and successful in the presence of your master. Your mistakes are not met with painful punishment at the hands of your master; but instead are met with a gentle reorientation to the correct path. Your hard work and faithfulness do nothing to gain your master’s favor because you are already highly favored. Your hard work and faithfulness are simply the automatic responses to your master’s loving actions. That’s a good life.

Jesus insists that the good life for you and I is to know the master--the one and only true God, and Jesus Christ, the one sent by God.

This world is a perfectly safe place for you to be because it is in the hands of a God who is actively, competently, and compassionately caring for you. Allow that image of God’s goodness to take hold of your heart, as it did for Jesus, and you will have the gift of real and eternal life.

Amen.

Luke 1:26-38

In the sixth month the angel Gabriel was sent by God to a town in Galilee called Nazareth, to a virgin engaged to a man whose name was Joseph, of the house of David. The virgin’s name was Mary. And he came to her and said, “Greetings, favored one! The Lord is with you.” But she was much perplexed by his words and pondered what sort of greeting this might be. The angel said to her, “Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God. And now, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son, and you will name him Jesus. He will be great, and will be called the Son of the Most High, and the Lord God will give to him the throne of his ancestor David. He will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and of his kingdom there will be no end.”

Mary said to the angel, “How can this be, since I am a virgin?”

The angel said to her, “The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you; therefore the child to be born will be holy; he will be called Son of God. And now, your relative Elizabeth in her old age has also conceived a son; and this is the sixth month for her who was said to be barren. For nothing will be impossible with God.”

Then Mary said, “Here am I, the servant of the Lord; let it be with me according to your word.” Then the angel departed from her.

I like to refer to John the Baptist as a “seasonal employee of the church” because he only shows up on church radars around this time of year; but he’s not the only one. The same can be said of Mary, the mother of Jesus. She’s not a figure that figures much in the lives of the typical non-Catholic Christians. Mary only makes a liturgical appearance at Jesus’ birth and at his crucifixion. But there is so much more to be said about the mother of Jesus beyond that she was there at the beginning and end of Jesus’ earthly life.

In fact, Trinity Lutheran Seminary professor Mark Allen Powell says that Mary is “the model for Christian discipleship, the person who all people, men and women alike should emulate, especially if they wish to follow her son.”

Mary is selected by God for an important task of literally and figuratively bearing the good news to the world. She is picked because God has found favor in her...but we are not told why. She was not wealthy or famous, so those could not have been the reasons God picked her. There’s nothing to indicate her favor with God was due to her attractiveness, work ethic, intelligence, artistic skill, or her ability to work a room and charm the socks off everyone. Whatever standard we think makes for a successful person today is not attributed to Mary. So, apparently those are not the attributes God looks for in a disciple. All we know is that Mary believed God’s word and said “yes” to God.

God is always the first impulse and the first actor. That is what we mean by grace. God makes the first move. But the powerful stuff happens when we say “yes” to God.” Notably, she is not blessed because she is going to be the physical mother of Jesus, but because she believed God's word. So, whatever blessing Mary enjoys is one we all can share, if we emulate her. We cannot all be physical parents of Jesus, but we can believe God's word will be fulfilled.”

This is a matter of profound practical importance for us today. God is constantly communicating God’s will, much like the invisible radio waves and satellite signals that saturate our atmosphere. Our invitation is to tune our spiritual devices so that we pick up on God’s signal. Blessing comes from our will being in sync with God’s will. It means tuning in and saying yes.

Mary, of course, was not the first person to tune into God’s communication channel. Scripture is full of people’s “call stories” -- those times and spaces where regular people were struck with spiritual inspiration that changed the course of their life and through which the good news was manifest on earth. Moses and Isaiah are two notable examples. And when their call stories are held up alongside Mary’s we notice a pattern that holds true for our lives today.

The pattern goes like this: There’s a greeting (1:28), a startled reaction (1:29), an exhortation not to fear (1:30), a divine commission (1:31-33), an objection (1:34), a reassuring word (1:35), and the offer of a confirming sign (1:36-37).

So how do we know when we have tuned into God’s communication channel? We will encounter God in scripture, worship, study, prayer, or mindfulness and be startled. As quickly as we are startled, we will feel a sense of calm. We will be given an idea that we feel wholly ill-equipped to tackle. God will promise that no task of faith is impossible. And once we say yes, we will find encouragement along the journey. That’s a pattern I hope you will recognize in your life. If you don’t, it is not too late to adjust the dial or change the channel.

Mary exemplifies discipleship in the way she listens and believes. This is not a way of life for the proud or powerful, the self-sufficient or the sanctimonious. As Jesus will later state, the gate is narrow and few will enter. But for those who set themselves to the work of listening to God and saying “yes” to God’s invitations, there are blessings in abundance that the whole world will enjoy.

May you, along with Mary, be bold in your yesses. And may you, along with Mary, be led to proclaim:

“My soul magnifies the Lord,
    and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior,
for he has looked with favor on the lowliness of his servant.
    Surely, from now on all generations will call me blessed;
for the Mighty One has done great things for me,
    and holy is his name.
His mercy is for those who fear him
    from generation to generation.
He has shown strength with his arm;
    he has scattered the proud in the thoughts of their hearts.
He has brought down the powerful from their thrones,
    and lifted up the lowly;
he has filled the hungry with good things,
    and sent the rich away empty.
He has helped his servant Israel,
    in remembrance of his mercy,
according to the promise he made to our ancestors,
    to Abraham and to his descendants forever.” (Luke 1:46-56)

Amen.

A Perfectly Safe Place for God's People...and Puppies!

Advent Midweek – Mary's Song