…the expectations and priorities that this society sets for us are not the ones that God sets for us. The expectations and priorities that we set for ourselves are often not the ones God has in mind for us. So we have to listen hard for the Holy Spirit…

…I wonder if this was God’s intention—I wonder if this was God’s challenge. I wonder if this was God’s way of showing the people that to be good, to be truly good, we can’t be one homogenous society, we can’t all be the same and only love one another because we’re related or because we look and act alike; we can’t stay cloistered and closed-off. I wonder if God wanted to show us that we have to love one another unconditionally, simply because we’re all human…

…this kind of radical imagination is what Paul and Silas were using when they were singing their hymns and praises at the top of their lungs while sitting bruised and cut and broken in jail. They sang about what “miracles of God are needed to get free.”

I wonder sometimes, about the Church today. Not our church specifically, but the capital-C Church, the Church as a whole. I wonder sometimes if we’re in some kind of in-between…

Scripture readings and reflections from some of our amazing youth!

A Sermon for the fourth Sunday in Easter, on Psalm 23 & John 10:22-30; written and preached by guest-preacher and church member Kyle Arnold on May 8th, 2022.

Changing the way we view things is often scary and jarring. We want to fall into old patterns of what we thought was right and wrong, good and bad, black and white. But that leaves us blind to the things that really matter—creation, changes, the beauty of this world, and the beauty of other people…

So maybe we don’t have powers bestowed upon us from Jesus; maybe we can’t heal the sick with a touch or a prayer. But we do have the words and the teachings Jesus gave us. So, no, we can’t magically make someone rise out of poverty, but we can advocate and work for things like more affordable housing, for cancellation of debt, for accessible healthcare, for real, tangible changes that frighten the powerful because it means the people the powerful have put down for so long finally have a chance…

…today, I want us to focus on the glad surprises that this world gives us, that glad surprises where Jesus is present; the surprises that those in power try their best to stop us from seeing or experiencing. I want us to really sit and be with the joy of this surprise, to think about all the ways Love conquers hate and that Life conquers death in a world that is not at all hospitable to Love or the lives of so many…

We see that glimmer of hope, that sliver possibility of an earth as it is in Heaven. But before we can see that far forward, we have to get through what comes next…

…Mary is preparing Jesus for the horror that is to come. She is not in denial about what is coming. She is not misunderstanding what is coming. She is not trying to twist the tragedy that’s coming for her own benefit. She knows Jesus’ spirit.

Now after the father reminds this cranky, wet-blanket, older son that he will still have everything he will ever want or need in the world, he says, “…we had to celebrate and rejoice.” Not “we should,” or “we can;” “we had to.” There was no choice here…

Something’s gotta give here— “…unless you repent,” Jesus says, “you will all perish just as they did.” I read this as less of a warning of divine punishment, and more of a warning that, you have got to change your ways if you want an earth as it is in heaven—you’ve got to advocate for one another, for a world in which all people are getting the love they need not just survive, but to thrive…

…ignorance is a tough thing to fight. There’s a reason the phrase “ignorance is bliss” exists. Whether we’re not facing hard facts about the world or confronting difficult realities, or whether it’s more personal, and it’s just easier ignoring our own demons and insecurities and staying in this dark place— it might be dark, but it's what we know…

…we’re constantly at risk of being taken advantage of, constantly at risk of falling for scare tactics, for signing dangerous deals with various devils…

Because if this week’s passage, and Jesus’ anger and frustration tell us anything, it’s that we have all the tools we need to make this world the peaceful place it should be, but we just don’t use them…

Think about the way our bodies change and adapt and transform throughout this difficult and delicate life. Think about the many phases, our many different bodies. All our bodies. Think about the different people we become with each change, with each injury, with each surgery. And then imagine all our bodies with no pain, with no suffering…

But I don’t necessarily think that Paul’s vision and Baruch’s vision have to be mutually exclusive, or in any kind of competition. I think that we can be skeptical, we can change with our minds with our circumstances, we can question and wonder and ponder, but we can also have some kind of absurd faith that with God, all things truly are possible…

The resurrection, for all its glory and magic, is ultimately about the Love that God has for us, and the Love that we need to act out in the world. It’s about making sacrifices and doing without for the betterment of all. It’s about honoring and being one with those who mourn, those who weep, those who are addicts, those who struggle…

…Paul is talking about capital L Love. He’s talking about living by way of Love. He’s talking about making sure every action you do, being done with Love in mind, with your fellow humankind in mind…