John 14:1-14

"Do not let your hearts be troubled. Believe in God, believe also in me. In my Father's house there are many dwelling places. If it were not so, would I have told you that I go to prepare a place for you? And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and will take you to myself, so that where I am, there you may be also. And you know the way to the place where I am going." Thomas said to him, "Lord, we do not know where you are going. How can we know the way?" Jesus said to him, "I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me. If you know me, you will know my Father also. From now on you do know him and have seen him." Philip said to him, "Lord, show us the Father, and we will be satisfied." Jesus said to him, "Have I been with you all this time, Philip, and you still do not know me? Whoever has seen me has seen the Father. How can you say, "Show us the Father'? Do you not believe that I am in the Father and the Father is in me? The words that I say to you I do not speak on my own; but the Father who dwells in me does his works. Believe me that I am in the Father and the Father is in me; but if you do not, then believe me because of the works themselves. Very truly, I tell you, the one who believes in me will also do the works that I do and, in fact, will do greater works than these, because I am going to the Father. I will do whatever you ask in my name, so that the Father may be glorified in the Son. If in my name you ask me for anything, I will do it.

I do not have enough training in the science of psychology to even consider myself an armchair psychologist, but I have a hunch that a person sees his or her world through the lens of one, or maybe two, formative relationships that he or she has experienced. Most likely, this formative relationship is with one or both parents. Generally speaking, the way in which your parent has interacted with you has informed your sense of self and your place in the world, what to expect of relationships in general, and how you relate to other people. A good psychologist or counselor will help you revisit these formative relational experiences in order to help you understand whether what those experiences taught you are actually true or not.

I am not familiar with any qualitative data on the subject, but I would offer a second hunch, that parents in general try to do the best they can. You probably didn’t find a Hallmark Mother’s Day card with that sentiment “You do the best you can,” but I still think it’s good news.

We only know what we know; and we know what we know only through the way our parents taught us to know things. And even if most parents generally do the best they can, they are limited by the ways that they were raised to understand the world. The way I understand myself and the world is directly tied to the way my mom and dad understand themselves and the world...and, of course, how they interacted with me.

Our image of God, like everything else, is filtered through the lens of the one or two formative human relationships in our life. It is typical for children to think of God as very similar to their parents...bigger and more powerful versions to be sure, but still very much in line with the thoughts and behaviors of the parent. A child who grows up feeling safe and cared for by a parent will default to an understanding of God as safe and caring. By the same token, a child who grows up being abused by a parent will default to an understanding of God as abusive.

It takes considerable effort for people to adapt their understanding of God, especially if it goes against everything they have been taught by those early formative relationships. A child who grew up feeling safe and cared for by a parent finds it difficult to imagine God could ever be abusive. By the same token, a child who grows up being abused by a parent finds it difficult to imagine God could ever be loving and caring.

We are at a bit of a disadvantage when contemplating matters of the divine because we only know what has been allowed to pass through the lens through which we view and understand the world.

Today’s gospel scripture is a beautiful example of Jesus compassionately correcting some of his disciples misconceived notions about the divine. Jesus invites the disciples to use his life and ministry as the lens through which to view and understand the world. The text is saturated with patience, reassurance, promise, and hope. Jesus is addressing some deep-seated insecurities and mistaken assumptions about God that his disciples have adopted in their lifetime. Here, in the moments before his execution, Jesus urges the disciples to be filled with…

… peace (“Do not let your hearts be troubled”)

… faith (“Believe in God, believe also in me”)

… assurance (“If you know me, you will know my Father also”)

… and divine power (“the one who believes in me will also do the works that I do”)

Take comfort, my friends, in knowing that the heads and hearts of Jesus’ disciples were still filled with fallacies about God even after spending years in Jesus’ presence. Also, take comfort that Jesus’ promises of peace, faith, assurance, and divine power were communicated in a time of uncertainty, turmoil, and disappointment. This speech, after all, comes on the heels of Jesus’ prediction of Peter’s denial and Judas’ betrayal. None of this compromised the truth of Jesus’ great instruction: Do not be troubled, believe in God, you know what to do, and you will be able to do it.

Jesus’ earthly life shows the world what God is like in flesh and blood, so that we can have a more accurate understanding of who God is, as well as who we are.

God, it turns out, is Christlike. Everything that Christ did during his earthly life was what God would have done -- what God DID do. God does not have a shadow side, ulterior motives, or a secret identity. God was fully exposed in the person of Jesus.

God, it turns out, is a skilled craftsman, and storm-calmer.

God, it turns out, is a healer and miracle-worker.

God, it turns out, has no regard for our barriers of race, ethnicity, class, religion, and gender.

God, it turns out, pays all his laborers equally.

God, it turns out, has a taste for a good wine and likes being invited to dinner.

God, as it turns out, is willing to die to expose humanity’s fear and lust for earthly power.

God, as it turns out, has high expectations for those who claim to follow...but also has incredible patience and unlimited forgiveness.

God, as it turns out, needed Jesus to show people just how short they had sold themselves and how short they had sold God.

Each one of us has been raised to see the world through a particular lens; but this lens often keeps us from fully realizing who we are and who God is. There’s no button to push or magic wand to wave to break free from these limiting understandings. One cannot be enlightened in an instant. But there is work you can do to allow God’s identity and relationship to be the primary way through which you view and understand the world.

You can read the stories of scripture to become more aware of who God is and who God isn’t.

You can talk to God, as matter of factly as you picked up the phone to talk to that old friend last week.

You can seek out a psychiatrist or counselor to help you understand how and why you have come to understand the world the way that you do; and to see what you have come to believe about yourself that simply is not true.

And you can meditate on Jesus’ last words to his disciples in what was also a chaotic and uncertain time: Do not be troubled, believe in God, you know what to do, and you will be able to do it.

Amen.

John 20:19-31

When it was evening on that day, the first day of the week, and the doors of the house where the disciples had met were locked for fear of the Jews, Jesus came and stood among them and said, “Peace be with you.” After he said this, he showed them his hands and his side. Then the disciples rejoiced when they saw the Lord. Jesus said to them again, “Peace be with you. As the Father has sent me, so I send you.” When he had said this, he breathed on them and said to them, “Receive the Holy Spirit. If you forgive the sins of any, they are forgiven them; if you retain the sins of any, they are retained.” But Thomas (who was called the Twin), one of the twelve, was not with them when Jesus came. So the other disciples told him, “We have seen the Lord.” But he said to them, “Unless I see the mark of the nails in his hands, and put my finger in the mark of the nails and my hand in his side, I will not believe.”

A week later his disciples were again in the house, and Thomas was with them. Although the doors were shut, Jesus came and stood among them and said, “Peace be with you.” Then he said to Thomas, “Put your finger here and see my hands. Reach out your hand and put it in my side. Do not doubt but believe.” Thomas answered him, “My Lord and my God!” Jesus said to him, “Have you believed because you have seen me? Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have come to believe.” Now Jesus did many other signs in the presence of his disciples, which are not written in this book. But these are written so that you may come to believe that Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of God, and that through believing you may have life in his name.

Based on our sermons from the last few years, Pastor Mark and I are on the same wavelength regarding the story of “Doubting” Thomas. We have each preached about how the dude accumulated a couple centuries worth of a bad rap. He doesn’t really deserve the “Doubting” moniker because he was the one who went about his daily life while his friends were cowering in fear inside a locked room. He, after all, only wanted to experience what those same friends had experienced -- the resurrected presence of his rabbi, Jesus.

Well, a lot has changed since we heard this story last year and I’m understanding this story in a whole new light given the state of our world right now. I’m not suggesting that the story has changed, or that the way you or I previously understood the story is wrong in any way. Simply put, the way you understand any good story is dependent on how you experience our world. You get something different out of a good story each time you read or hear it. The stories in scripture are no different. That’s why we revisit the same stories year after year in worship. That’s why we celebrate the same liturgical events year after year. The stories don’t change, but the insights we glean from them certainly do change and are dependent on a wide variety of present-day circumstances.

All that to say, in light of what’s going on right now, I’m not a big fan of Thomas. In light of what’s going on right now, his actions seem irresponsible and short-sighted -- a warning for all of us to heed.

In light of what’s going on right now, it’s easy to imagine a small group of disciples huddled together at someone’s home, rooted in place by fear, knowing something threatening and tragic awaited them if they stepped outside. They were quarantined; not out of fear of contracting a virus, but rather out of fear that they would be the targets of religious, cultural, and political violence.

One of the disciples did not heed the warnings. Thomas was not about to be cooped up at home. He was the one who decided to carry on as though life was no different than before (which is silly, because everything had changed). Call him brave, if that’s your inclination. Call him arrogant, if you will. Or, as has been done throughout Christian history, call him incredulous.

Doubting Thomas left the others behind, and by doing so, put them at risk. It’s easy to imagine someone recognizing Thomas and tracking him back to the house where they all were gathered. The entire Jesus movement could have been stopped dead in its tracks if those initial disciples had been seized and executed just like their leader.

The clear message from the beginning of the global practice of quarantine and physical distancing has been to protect those who are most vulnerable. We have been warned against carrying on with life as usual because who knows what we could unwittingly bring back to our homes, schools, businesses, and churches. The practice of quarantine has been an exercise in sacrifice -- doing with less activity, less freedom, less income -- in order to preserve the health of our neighbors and ourselves.

If you are among those of us who are not engaged in essential services, and you are heeding the advice of scientists and staying at home, you are very much like those initial disciples who huddled in their home at a time of uncertainty, which is a good thing! Recall what happened to those disciples as they huddled in their home -- Jesus showed up! Jesus showed up in their home, passing through a locked door, and made the good news of his resurrection promises immediately clear to his friends. Jesus is capable of communicating God’s promises even when we are isolated at home.

Doubting Thomas didn’t get that, at least initially. He was a busy-body. He had big plans and things to do. He wasn’t about to waste time stuck at home because he doubted God would show up there. So he went out, and in so doing he missed Jesus’ initial appearance. Doubting Thomas gives us a powerful warning against our tendency to take matters into our own hands and as well as our tendency to force the world to adjust to our expectations and desires. May we not make the same mistake. Jesus is perfectly capable of making his presence known to us as we isolate in our homes in order to ensure the safety of millions of our neighbors.

Doubting Thomas wasn’t about to wait around at home; and after these last few weeks I definitely understand how hard it is to wait. It seems like all I do is wait...and it’s nerve wracking! Here’s a list of a few of the things I am realizing I wait on every day.

I want to invite you to consider all of the waiting that you are doing as an exercise in trust and a reminder of the cliché that it’s the journey that matters, not just the destination. This year, the heroes of this Bible story are the disciples who took isolation and quarantine seriously. They were the ones who allowed God to work within the waiting and uncertainty. They were the ones who did not force God’s hand, tempt fate, or act out of disbelief. They were the ones to whom God’s promises were revealed. They waited and were rewarded.

May these days of waiting be opportunities to catch an unexpected and startling glimpse of God’s presence and God’s promises. Slow down, stay home, balance compassion with caution, direct your spiritual energy to those who most need it, May you trust that God will show up in the physical and metaphorical places where you feel stuck, and, most importantly, that God will guide us back together when it is time to do so.

Amen.

The Christlike God – John 14:1-14

Jesus Shows Up at Home!