Values to Guide Us

Based on 1 Peter 1:17-23
First delivered Apr. 26, 2020
Rev. Dr. Kevin Orr 

            As we move along the course of this pandemic, conversations are beginning to happen in earnest around how to safely reopen society, to get our economy started up again. Our government leaders are developing plans that suggest how to ease the stay-at-home orders in phases that protects our most vulnerable citizens but also gets businesses running and people back to work. Public schools are closed for the rest of this school year. Now, conversations are happening about how the fall semester may unfold. Earlier this week I listened in on a webinar from Ohio State for parents and families of students intending to enter as freshmen this year. Yes, my youngest will likely be a Buckeye. A lot of the questions people asked were about what might happen in the fall. Will classes be online only? Will the tuition be adjusted? What about housing? The only answer we got was that final decisions haven’t been made. But the conversations to answer those questions are taking place. Reopening society is much harder than closing it down, isn’t it?

            Conversations about how to restart public worship is also happening. Our bishop has called together a group of people who are tasked with working out some guidance on how to go about restarting public worship in ways that are safe. The lead teams of our churches and I are looking forward to that guidance. We are going to figure out together how best to proceed so that we can worship together again in our sanctuaries.

            Some church leaders are calling for this conversation around restarting to be about more than just restarting public worship. They suggest this can be a time to think about this as a relaunch of our church as a whole. What will we start back up and what will we decide not to restart? What will we continue doing that we started during this time of shutdown? These leaders are presenting an invitation to rethink what doing church will be like in a post-Covid 19 world. Rather than a return to normal, a return to how things were before, we are challenged to consider what church will be like going forward, a church that will be different from the way it was before the shutdown.

            Before we can answer questions like what will we restart, not restart, and continue doing, we need to consider a bigger question. That question is: what do we as a church value? What are we about? If we are clear about why we exist, this can help us in deciding what we as a church should keep doing and what perhaps we should let go. Where do we go for guidance to answer the question of what we value as a church?

            This passage from 1 Peter gives us some handles on what we value as a church, and how these values can ground what we do as a church as we move out of the pandemic and into the society we have that has been profoundly changed. Now, as I talk about values we hold as a church, I am mindful that there are people receiving this message who are not members of Westgate or Parkview. They may not even be members of any church. When I talk about values we hold as a church, I am thinking of church in its broadest meaning. I am talking about every person who consider themselves to be followers of Jesus. It doesn’t matter if you belong to the churches I serve as pastor, this message is going to be helpful for you, I hope.

            It is especially good to look at 1 Peter for guidance on what the church values because he is writing to a community of Jesus followers who are living in a society that, for them, has profoundly changed. They were all raised to practice the religion of their ancestors. They performed their obligations to give honor to their gods and goddesses. But now they have left behind the ways of their ancestors. They have rejected the religious practices of their community. They now affirm that there is only one God, whose Son Jesus was their Lord and Savior instead of Caesar. Having made this shift, they found themselves pushed to the margins of society, as you can imagine. They were a persecuted minority. They had become strangers in their own country. They could no longer live like they used to for as long as they stayed faithful to the way of Jesus. And they were all new to this, first generation Jesus followers. The Spirit had moved in their hearts and they said yes to the gospel. Everything had changed. Now what? Peter wrote them this letter of encouragement to share with them what this Jesus movement was all about. There are three values that Peter names in this passage from 1 Peter 1:17-23. Let’s take a look at them.

            It starts in vs. 17, where Peter says if you are calling God “Father”, the One who judges the deeds of people without prejudice, then live in reverent fear. The value here is that God is paying attention to how we live, what we say and do. I know there is some ambivalence about calling God “Father” because of how this has propped up the oppressive system of patriarchy. And not everyone has pleasant associations with the term “father”, and they overlay their experiences with the father they grew up on God, which can be a problem. That said, the point is that we have a relationship with God that is like that of a parent and a child. Yes, God is an impartial judge, but the relationship is one of parent and child, not of a stranger in a black robe rendering a judgment and then moving on to the next case in the docket. The other thing is that reverent fear is not the same as holy terror. Remember that God loves you perfectly. Perfect love drives out all fear. We are not to be afraid of God. Far from it. God is our rock, our shelter in the storm, the one whose love for us will never end. We need not fear losing God’s love or being disowned by God. God as father and God as judge is all in the context of a God who relates to us with love.

            The value that I see Peter lifting up here is that what we do matters. God, our heavenly father, who judges without partiality, is paying attention to what we do and say. God cares what we do. By extension, God cares about us. We matter to God. If we didn’t matter to God, why would God care what we do? So, that is what is really going on here. Peter is making it clear to these tentative and anxious Jesus followers that the one who loves them as a father loves his children doesn’t have favorites. God loves each of us the same. I say it again: God does not pick favorites. Each one of us matters to God. What we do and say, how we live, matters to God.

            What have you been doing in response to this pandemic? I know many of us have had the privilege of staying at home. We didn’t have to go out and put our health at risk. Some of us have had to keep working because our employment is essential. But all of us have adjusted to how we live our daily lives. And all of those acts have made a difference. Still, it may seem at times that the pandemic is so big, impacting us so much, that it is overwhelming. What can we do to make things better? Is there anything we can do to make a difference? Be assured, what we do and what we say does make a difference. It matters. It certainly matters to God. Because you matter. That means we all need to be thoughtful about what we do going forward.

            The second value is found in vs. 21 where Peter says, “in God we trust.” Does that sound familiar? It’s been stamped on our paper money since the 1950s, about the same time “under God” was added to the pledge of allegiance. Having trust in God was something that Peter had to learn. He and the rest of the disciples were convinced that Jesus was the messiah, the son of the living God. But then he was arrested and beaten. Peter bailed on him, denying that he even knew Jesus. All the rest of the disciples fled as well. Then Jesus was killed. Their hopes were dashed. They were confused. How could they have been wrong? Where was God in all of this?

            But then Sunday came, and the tomb was empty. They shouldn’t have counted God out. When it appeared that all was lost, God came through by raising Jesus from the dead. Not even death could prevent God from accomplishing what God wanted. In fact, the death of Jesus was part of the plan. The disciples learned to trust God after going through a situation that tested their faith in God like nothing else.

            Having had time to process the resurrection of Jesus, Peter was able to share with these Jesus followers that even before the world existed it was Jesus’ destiny to do what he did. After all these generations had gone by, thousands and thousands of years, in their own time Jesus fulfilled his destiny. They had the privilege to live in the time that Jesus accomplished his task. It took a long time, but finally what God intended for Jesus came to pass. Never count God out. God can be trusted. Nothing can ultimately stop God from accomplishing what God wants done.

            What is God accomplishing now during this pandemic? I wonder if there is something that God has been trying to accomplish in the church or in the world in which this pandemic is creating the space for that to happen. The Spirit is revealing to us how our society is structured, causing us to wonder if we can do better, have a society that is more just and environmentally sustainable. The Spirit is revealing what is most important about the church and pushing us to be creative in how we stay connected, worship together, and reach out to our community. I have heard a number of people say the pandemic has forced the church to move rapidly into the 21^st century by embracing the possibilities of modern technology like social media and digital communications. Could it be that in this pandemic God is at work bringing about the change in the church and in the world that God has intended? We can trust in God, that there are things happening right now that aligns with God’s intentions. We can trust that God is active in the midst of these challenging times. Don’t count God out. We can trust that God is up to something.

            The third value Peter lifts up is in verse 22: love one another deeply, from the heart. This goes back to verse 17 where Peter talks about what we do matters to God. But even further back to verse 15 Peter calls us to be holy because God is holy. God is holy and God is love. The two go together. Peter challenges us to live our lives shaped by who God is. That means living a life of love. As Jesus followers, Peter says, that’s what we do. Love for one another is a central value for us. People will know we are Christians by our love. What more can I add? This value speaks for itself. What we say and what we do is to be guided by the value of love for one another. It’s just that clear.

            As we think about moving forward into this changed society, as we reset our church, adapting to a different world, I invite all of us to live out these three values: what you do matters, trust God, and love deeply from the heart. We are going through a time of amazing possibility to shift how we live our lives, how our society is ordered, and how we do church. However we do church in the days to come, if we let these values shape our lives we will be able to move forward with a confident hope that we are living lives that are pleasing to God, lives that will make God proud. So, in the days to come, remember that you matter to God and what you do and say matters to God. Trust God. Love each other deeply from the heart.

The Foundation for Our Joy

Based on 1 Peter 1:3-9
First delivered April 19, 2020
Rev. Dr. Kevin Orr 

            Signs of hope are beginning to surface, pointing to the beginning of the lift of the stay-at-home order. Slowly, but surely, we are all making plans on how to re-enter society. The infection rate in Ohio appears to have plateaued. If everything goes according to plan, the infection rate should start declining, and then the rate increase of deaths will hopefully start going down. It’s not like we will get to where no one will catch the corona virus. And, unfortunately, there will continue to be those who die from it. But there are signs that what we have done has flattened the curve sufficiently that our hospitals will be able to manage. We will not see the horrific scenes that have come out of New York City and other places where the health care system was completely overrun. It looks like all of our sacrifice is paying off and we can start thinking about getting businesses, schools, and churches opened up.

            I wish we could just flip a switch. But that’s not how this will work. In fact, those who have underlying health risks will need to stay at home while everyone else starts venturing out more. And even when we do get to go back to restaurants, shops and churches, we will need to maintain that distance. But, if the process we are directed to follow gets done, and everything goes according to plan, we will be back in our sanctuaries sooner rather than later. We will avoid any spikes of infection that would cause us to go backwards. We will be on the path to some semblance of normal, whatever that will mean. At least most of us won’t be cooped up at home like we have been. Maybe schools will even get to have graduation ceremonies. We might even get to watch some baseball games on TV. We are getting there.

            Still, we won’t get back to how things were. There will still be physical distancing. Tables at restaurants will be spaced further apart. Fans at baseball games will be spread out a bit. We will see people wearing masks in public for quite some time. There still won’t be large gatherings of people packed in to small spaces. It’s a long road back to how things were. And even then, will it really be as it was? Won’t we all be extra cautious around each other? I wonder if waving to each other and bowing may become more common than shaking hands.

            Of course, as this time of physical separation has played out, frustration is building. We have seen protests spring up here and there, calling for the authorities to ease the stay-in-place guidelines and the closing of non-essential businesses. Our unemployment benefits system has been inundated, delaying much needed assistance. These checks we are supposed to get from the federal government is taking longer than originally hoped and some are finding that they will not be getting money. So many are struggling to make ends meet and there is real anxiety that a large number of people on the edge will fall into poverty. The closing down of much of the economy has generated a lot of stress and anxiety and frustration. So much suffering, not just among those who are sick with the virus.

            It’s important to remember that all these mitigation measures have been about saving lives. This is not some kind of big government power grab or conspiracy. It is the needed response to a vicious virus that is highly contagious and kills a lot of people. We have seen what happens when communities are not able to control the spread. We don’t want to experience that. So, we do what we do to save lives. And as we move toward re-opening our society, the central reason for all of this is to save lives. Economies will recover. Life is more valuable than money.

            Every life is precious and deserving of protection. So, it is not ok to just open everything up without worrying about the spread, anticipating the development of herd immunity at the expense of thousands upon thousands of deaths. That is irresponsible. Life is too precious to be ruthlessly sacrificed just so we can rush back to the way things were. Think about those essential workers who have been out there keeping the economy we have going, to all of a sudden be engulfed with crowded stores and bars and restaurants and workplaces again. These workers have already risked so much doing what they are already doing. And then we are just going to throw at them all of us who have had the privilege of staying at home? That disrespects the value of those workers who have already risked so much, who have themselves caught the virus and some who have died. This is what has to drive everything we do moving forward as a society: valuing the life of every person.

            This should not be hard for us. As Christians, we value all of life. We affirm that every person is created in the image and likeness of God. We affirm that every person is one for whom Christ died on the cross. As Christians, we resist the power of death. We reject the forces of evil in all forms. Our focus is on life, abundant life, for all people, not just in the life to come but in this life. The teachings of Jesus are all about manifesting abundant life in the here and now, of caring for the last and the least, sharing what we have, opening our hands instead of clenching our fists, making room for everyone. Jesus, who we follow, is the Lord of life.

            This is what we celebrate during Easter. We are celebrating the defeat of the power of death and the new life we have in Christ. We celebrate that although death will claim each of us, death will not hold us. The grip of death has been broken because of what Jesus has done. Jesus broke the chains of death by rising from the dead. Because of this, we have the promise of everlasting life. Death is not the end, but a moment of transition to new life. This is what we celebrate every Easter season. In fact, every Sunday is a day to celebrate the resurrection.

            This season of celebration should spark in us a desire to “rejoice with an indescribable and glorious joy” as we read in 1 Peter 1:8. Easter is meant to be a season full of joy. But, have you felt that? Have you felt a lot of joy recently? I know I haven’t. I have felt a lot of things since last Sunday. Joy isn’t on the top of the list of feelings.

            I think we will be filled with joy when we gather together again. What a day of celebration that will be! There will be every temptation to embrace each other, which we won’t be able to do! But at least we will all be together in the same place. That will be a joyful time. But we aren’t there yet. How do we express joy right now, in this season of global pandemic? How do we “rejoice with an indescribable and glorious joy” in this moment?

            This letter we call First Peter was written to a cluster of small churches throughout Asia Minor. These Christians were going through a time of persecution and suffering. This was not a government sponsored persecution. Instead, this was just informal harassment. Being adherents of a new religion, perceived by many as some weird cult, Christians were mocked, harassed, mistreated, discriminated against. Life was not easy for them.

            They felt like exiles in their own land. It’s not like they were some immigrant community that moved in from somewhere else. They were locals. They were born and raised there. But then they heard the gospel and came to believe in Jesus. They were baptized. They identified themselves as children of the one true God. They stopped worshiping the gods of their ancestors. They acknowledged Caesar, but claimed Jesus as their true lord. They claimed a new citizenship. They saw themselves as citizens of the kingdom of God. And all the people they grew up with, their friends and neighbors, and even some in their own family, thought they had lost their minds, swept up into a ridiculous cult that worshiped a crucified god. These Christians were pushed to the margins of their own communities. Becoming a Christian in those days was not a popular move. There came a real cost. Committing to the way of Jesus meant walking a road of suffering, even a road of exile.

            Peter wrote them a letter of encouragement. He wanted to remind them of who they are. They are children of God. And that means that they have promised for them an inheritance as children. This inheritance was waiting for them in heaven. It would not fade or be defiled. God held it in safekeeping. All of this was due to what God had done for them by an act of great mercy…the resurrection of Jesus. Because of Jesus, they were born again. They were once no people, but now are God’s people. Everything had changed. They had a hopeful future.

            These Christians were not living in a time of rainbows and unicorns. Anything but. Yet, Peter writes of their believing in Jesus with an “indescribable and glorious joy.” Well, I guess it would be indescribable. How do you describe having joy when you are in a season of suffering? How do people who feel like they are living a life of exile, filled with harassment and rejection, also express joy?

            Whatever joy they had was not founded on their present circumstances. Being persecuted, harassed, pushed to the margins, was not something they found to celebrate and be joyful about. No, the foundation of their joy was their faith in God’s promise. They believed that Jesus defeated death. They believed they had received new birth through baptism. They believed they had been claimed as God’s children. They believed they had waiting for them an inheritance in heaven which would not fade or be lost. In other words, these Christians believed they had a future with hope. And it was this belief, this faith, that provided the foundation for their joy even though they were living a life filled with suffering.

            We are living through a time of suffering that is very different. Christianity is not some new cult on the fringe of society. We have a place at the table. We have a space in the public square. It’s not the way it used to be, but Christianity has not been pushed to the margins, despite what some people might claim. The suffering we are enduring has many faces. But the main source, of course, is this common experience of the pandemic. All people, regardless of their faith or religious tradition, are suffering the impacts of the coronavirus.

            Our suffering is different from the suffering endured by those Christians in Asia Minor when Peter wrote that letter of encouragement. But the foundation of our hope can be the same as theirs. In the midst of the suffering we are all experiencing, we too can believe that Jesus defeated death. We can believe that we have received new birth through baptism. We can believe that we have been claimed as God’s children. We can believe that we have waiting for us an inheritance in heaven which will not fade or be lost. In other words, today, this very hour, we can believe that we have a future with hope. This can be the foundation of our joy in this time of suffering.

            Of course, we are not all suffering to the same degree. This pandemic has revealed how fragile our society is. How can you stay at home when you don’t have a home to stay in? What do you do when you live paycheck to paycheck, and then the paycheck is gone? It is telling that one of the first things our community did was organize for kids to still get school lunches because there are many kids in our community for which that was the only nutritious meal they were able to have each day. I have heard people say that the pandemic affects us all equally, regardless of class, race, gender, sexual orientation or however else we classify each other. But that is just not true. The pandemic is not affecting us equally. Some people, some groups and communities are suffering much more and are under much greater risk. I acknowledge my privilege of being able to work from home. And if I were to get sick, I have good health care options. But Syrians who live in a large refugee camp, or Palestinians contained in the West Bank where there are less than 100 ventilators are not as fortunate. Yes, this pandemic has been quite revelatory, of how fragile our economy is for many of us. And we are left with a lot to deal with in the wake of this transformative event.

            The main point I’m trying to make is that no matter how intense our suffering right now, Jesus is still the source of our hope. We are still God’s children. In God we still have new life. The power of death has still been defeated for us all. Our future remains secure. Our heavenly inheritance awaits us still. We still have hope. And this hope does not disappoint for it is a hope founded on God’s great mercy.

            Now, this is not a call for us to put our heads firmly in the clouds, or to stick our heads in cotton candy sand, and not be honest about the suffering that is all around us and within our own lives. We need to name the suffering we see and not turn away from it. I admit, there are some news stories that have come across my news feed that I skipped reading. I just didn’t want to face it. I didn’t want to read the descriptions. I didn’t want to see the pictures. And that’s ok. There is only so much we can process. I love what someone said recently about 24/7 access to news as something for our convenience and not for our consumption. So true. But when we see images of people in cars that stretch for miles waiting to access a food giveaway, or hear of how black and brown people are dying at a higher rate than white people as a consequence of structural racism, we need to let this sink in. We must resist the temptation to look the other way all the time. And we need to name our own struggles. This is not an easy time for anyone. We are all dealing with lots of stress. There’s no need to deny the obvious.

            We don’t have to turn our face away from suffering. We can face the reality of suffering and still have hope and not despair because of Jesus. It is possible to feel sorrow and joy at the same time…joyful sorrow.

            My feelings have been all over the place the past several weeks. Sometimes I feel energized and optimistic. I think about the new possibilities that are emerging around how to be church in an online world, for example. Other times, I feel discouraged and pessimistic. I see how this pandemic is impacting so many communities and vulnerable people, and I see how people are responding in ways that are not helpful. I wonder if we will have the capacity as a society to recover from this in healthy ways or if it will take us to a bad place. And a lot of times I feel tired and even a little numb over the whole situation. Maybe you have felt all kinds of ways during these past several weeks.

            I want to remind all of us that no matter how we feel at any given moment, the resurrection did happen. Jesus has defeated the power of death. We do have a future with hope. We are and will forever be God’s children. These are claims we hold by faith and they don’t change depending on how we feel. By the grace of God, we can hold on to our faith regardless of how we feel at any given moment. And even if our faith falters, God will never let us go. As the scriptures say, in Colossians 3:3, our lives are hidden with Christ in God. We have security in God, no matter how we feel or how insecure our health, livelihood or well-being may be.

            So, hold on to your faith. Keep trusting that what God has done through Jesus Christ is still in effect. In spite of the strange, even surreal, times we find ourselves in, this is still Easter season and we are still Easter people. Let this be the foundation of your joy.

            This joy we have may well be indescribable. It may even be indecipherable. But, deep down in our hearts, that joy is still there. And the time will come, hopefully soon, when that joy deep in our hearts will burst forth. We will express that joy when we are together again. And what a glorious joy that will be.

Easter Came Just the Same

          As I have thought about what to say this year for Easter, I keep thinking of the classic Christmas cartoon most of us have watched dozens of times: Dr. Seuss’s classic, “How the Grinch Stole Christmas.” In particular, I am thinking of near the end of the film. The Grinch is at the top of the mountain where his home is, his overloaded sled that was hauled up by his little dog with the antler tied to his head, filled to overflowing with all the stuff he took from the Whos of Whoville. The sun is rising. Christmas day is dawning. And the Grinch anticipates hearing all the Whos crying boo-hoo as they see all that had been taken away from them. The Grinch thought for sure he had ruined Christmas for the Whos in Whoville.

            But, what does he hear? What does he see? All the Whos of Whoville gather together in the public square, join hands to make a circle, like they always do, and sing with joy their Christmas song. The Grinch can’t understand it. Even though the Whos had no decorations, no packages, boxes, or bags, not even a can of Who hash, they still came together to sing. Christmas came. It came all the same.

            So here we are. And a grinch called the coronavirus has come to our town and taken from us what we have always had when we celebrate Easter. Of course, this grinch does not act out of spite and meanspiritedness like the Grinch of Dr. Seuss. The grinch, the coronavirus, just does what it does with no concern for us and our Easter traditions. Still, the effect of the coronavirus has kept us out of our churches. We aren’t at church wearing our Sunday best. Little boys and girls aren’t running around in their Easter dresses and suits. Not an Easter bonnet in sight. No Easter brunch at the restaurants. No Easter egg hunts. No gathering together to sing “Christ the Lord is Risen Today”, “He Lives” and “Up from the Grave He Arose.” We can’t go into the sanctuary to be overpowered by the fragrance of all the Easter lilies, while the pastor thinks, “Oops, I forgot to take some Benedryl.” No Easter cantatas. For myself, this is the first time in my life, all fifty-one years of it, that I did not enter a church sanctuary on Easter Sunday. Some of you reading or listening to this can claim an even longer time of attending church on Easter until this year. What traditions are you not having this year?

            The coronavirus, like the grinch, has taken much of what we have always had as part of our Easter celebrations. And yet…that doesn’t stop Easter from coming. Instead of gathering in our churches, we gather around computer screens or television screens. We hear those traditional Easter hymns in a different way. We might even sing along in our living rooms. We read again the scriptures that recount the resurrection of Jesus. Today’s Easter celebrations are certainly different. But we are still celebrating Easter. The coronavirus can’t take away our celebrating the resurrection of Jesus Christ.

            A few weeks ago, I was walking my dog. We were walking up the street and, as I looked around and saw all the dogwood and pear trees full of blossoms, and all the flowers popping up in everyone’s green lawns, I was struck by the fact that the coronavirus can’t stop springtime. New life, renewed life, emerges, even in the face of a pandemic. That gave me a real sense of comfort. Not everything was turned upside down. Not all was lost. Coronavirus is not all powerful. It can’t stop spring from coming. And on this day, as the sun rose, Easter came…it came just the same.

            I invite you to watch a special Easter presentation that some of my friends and I put together. Click on this link: https://youtu.be/jvI6xxvfZow .

            Over the next several weeks, as we remember and celebrate the resurrection of Jesus Christ, leading up to the Day of Pentecost, when we celebrate the outpouring of the Holy Spirit, my hope for you is that in spite of all that has been taken from us in this season, we still have each other. We still have Jesus. We still have the promise of everlasting life. The Spirit of God remains in our midst. Nothing, not even the coronavirus, can separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our risen Lord.

            Christ is risen! Truly he is risen! So, in any way you can today…rejoice!

What is This?

Based on Matthew 21:1-11
First delivered April 5, 2020
Rev. Dr. Kevin Orr 

            What is this? We are going through confusing times. “Unprecedented” is a word we are hearing a lot these days. Yes, plans are made for pandemics. But, let’s be honest, none of us really know what to do until the time comes. And I am pretty confident that no one who is hearing this message had a pandemic plan for themselves or their families. Our churches didn’t have pandemic plans. We are all having to figure this out as we go along. And as we make it up, and look for guidance from others, it can get confusing. Should we wear masks when we go outside or not? Should we limit our shopping to once a week or should we go every few days so that we limit our time in the store? I’m sure you have had your questions about what to do or not do. Now small businesses and even churches are rushing to apply for the payroll protection program through the banks. What will that process look like? How long will it take until these businesses and churches can get that money? I think of so many people who, for the first time in their lives, are trying to apply for unemployment insurance. Last week, Ohio reported that in two weeks there were 100,000 more people who applied for unemployment than the total for all of last year. I can only imagine the strain that system is under. Then there is the confusing process of getting medical supplies where they belong to meet the need. The process of even identifying where resources are and how much there is and where it should go, I can only imagine how complex and confusing that is. I could go on and on, but I think the point is clear. These are times of confusion and uncertainty, causing us to wonder about the times we are living in, “what is this?”

            As Christians we are entering into Holy Week. Lent is over. How was your Lent? Mine was not what I thought it was going to be. What kind of Lent was this? And now we are trying to experience Holy Week without gathering in our churches to wave palm branches, having Holy Communion as we recall the Last Supper story, singing together “Were You There” at a Good Friday service. We are trying to figure out how to live in to the passion week in ways that many of us have never done before. As we move into Holy Week, we all are wondering, what is this?

            As we begin this confusing journey through Holy Week, we hear the story of Jesus riding into Jerusalem on a donkey, with her colt trotting along beside her. Or maybe Jesus was riding on the colt. It’s unclear. In Matthew 21:7 we read that the disciples put their cloaks on the donkey and the colt and Jesus “sat on them.” I’m not sure how that’s possible. What are we to make of this? Did Jesus ride side saddle, sitting on the donkey with his legs draped over the colt who was basically strapped to the side of her mother? It’s confusing. But that’s just the start of what will be a confusing week for everyone in Jerusalem as the events unfold.

            As Jesus rides in on the donkey, a very large crowd throws their cloaks or palm branches on the road for the donkey to walk on, keeping the dust down I guess. It’s the royal treatment. And the crowd is shouting “Hosanna to the Son of David! Blessed is the one who comes in the name of the Lord!” This sounds like a king riding into town. It is a spectacle. So much so that as Jesus enters into Jerusalem, surrounded by this large crowd of people shouting and calling the rider on the donkey the son of David, we read that the whole city was in turmoil. Turmoil! I don’t think we can fully appreciate the context which would stir up a city to be filled with turmoil because someone is riding into town on a donkey with a large crowd calling him the son of David, which means that this is the long awaited messiah, the true king. All we know is that what is happening with Jesus’ entry into Jerusalem caused a great deal of turmoil which prompted the people of Jerusalem to ask, “who is this?” They aren’t asking about his name. They want to know who this person is, what does he represent, what are they dealing with. Something is happening, something unprecedented, and the people, filled with confusion and uncertainty, want to know what is happening.

            Of course, the people of Jerusalem by now should have known who this was. Jesus had been demonstrating who he was for a few years up to this point. He had been going around teaching, healing, working miracles. He had given off signs of who he is. For those who were paying attention, they would have known who Jesus is, just as Peter confessed, “You are the messiah, the son of the living God.” If we go back through Matthew, we will see all the places where Matthew mentions something about Jesus and says, “this took place to fulfill what had been spoken through the prophet.” Over and over, Matthew points to all the prophecies about the messiah and how Jesus fulfills those prophecies. There were clues that the people of Jerusalem could have followed. They could have known who this is. But they didn’t see it. What had been predicted was being fulfilled right in front of them, and they were filled with turmoil and confusion. To be generous, perhaps there were those who knew in their heads who Jesus is. They had seen the signs and in their heads knew who he was. But now it’s happening. His arrival was about to turn everything upside down. What was known in theory is getting real. And that can cause a good deal of turmoil as well.

            What we are going through with this pandemic had been predicted. This is not the first pandemic to hit the world. SARS, MERS, Ebola, Spanish Flu, the Plague. We watched the effects of Covid-19 as it worked its way through China, then to different parts of the world. We know how infectious disease spreads and what mitigation efforts are needed to slow the spread so that our hospital systems don’t get overrun, and what happens when such efforts are not enough. The signs, the predictions, are being fulfilled in front of us. Whether we knew this ahead of time in theory or not, now it’s real. And it is generating a good deal of turmoil. We have a sense of what lays ahead. There are predictions of what the future looks like. And it turns everything upside down.

            Today marks the beginning of passion week. Jesus enters Jerusalem, starting a week of passion, as he and his disciples live out the last supper, the betrayal, the arrest in the garden, the trial, the scourging and the crown of thorns, the crucifixion, the body wrapped and placed in a tomb. It is a week filled with passion that touches us deeply in our hearts as we enter again into the story, a story that leads to the remembering of the glorious resurrection next Sunday. In different ways this year we will remember this story and allow it to work its way on us.

            But our journey through the passion of this pandemic is not a week long. This passion journey is going to go on for months. This is a passion journey that none of us have walked before. We have signs of what will come. We know that in the weeks ahead there will be much suffering. There will be much loss. There will be many deaths. Our lives are being upended. But as we journey through this passion, we can go forward with confidence that there will be for us a day of resurrection. Even now, if we look, we can see signs of new life. And I don’t mean the new life of flowers opening and trees budding out. I mean signs of people expressing their support for those who are out there on the front lines of this pandemic, or who are doing other essential jobs that keep our society functioning. We see it in how neighbors are looking out for each other. We see it in how people are adapting to new ways to stay in touch with each other. And one day we will be able to gather again, this pandemic having been defeated. It will be a day of great celebration, a celebration that will last for a long time.

            So, I invite us, as we move into Holy Week, this annual pilgrimage through the passion week that leads to the celebration of resurrection, that we look to Holy Week as our map through this season of pandemic passion, with confidence that, in spite of all the confusion and upheaval we are experiencing now, and perhaps a good deal of suffering and loss, we know how this journey will end. It will end with resurrection and renewed life. This is our confident expectation and hope as we journey through this time of passion.

Set Your Minds on the Spirit

Based on Romans 8:6-11
First delivered Mar. 29, 2020
Rev. Dr. Kevin Orr 

            “To set the mind on the flesh is death, but to set the mind on the Spirit is life and peace.” These words of Paul are part of his argument that I don’t want to get much in to. Paul is making an extended argument about how Gentiles are included among God’s chosen people through the action of Jesus Christ. It’s not about being born a Jew, it’s about trusting in God. Paul uses words like “flesh” and “spirit” and “mind” as symbols to make this argument. As I have reflected on this passage throughout the week, the question kept coming to me. “So what?” The argument that Paul is making in Romans, it seems to me, doesn’t really matter right now. For all of us this shared experience of living through the coronavirus pandemic is impacting every aspect of our life, including what I should be saying in these messages. So, to dig in to Paul’s argument about Gentiles and Jews all being brought together as children of God seems to miss the point of the times in which we live.

            But I don’t want to let this text go. There is something Paul is saying about where we put our minds that resonates with me concerning these times that we are living through. What we think about, where we put our focus, does have an impact on the quality of our life. If we think about the flesh as a metaphor for our mortality or our own bodily needs, then setting our minds on the flesh does lead to death, a kind of spiritual death. But if we set our minds on the Spirit, the spirit of God, the spirit of life, the spirit of love, the spirit of creativity, then setting our minds on the spirit does lead to life and peace. I want to take a few minutes to talk about some observations I have had over the past few weeks of people setting their minds on the Spirit.

            Kim and I are big fans of the Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon. We watch them all faithfully. Of course, not when they air. DVRs are a great invention. Usually on the weekend we catch up and watch the previous week’s episodes. The show is produced in New York City. Obviously, production was shut down a few weeks ago. But instead of just playing reruns, Jimmy Fallon has still been putting out his show from his home. His wife, Nancy, is the camera operator. The camera is her IPhone. His two girls play the role of musicians, graphic designers, and just general cuteness. Jimmy still does his opening monologue. He then does a zoom call with a celebrity who promotes a non-profit organization. Perhaps later in the show he shows a musician who sent Jimmy a video of themselves performing from their home. Jimmy also films short bits around his home, joking around with his girls. One time, he and his wife filmed themselves taking a walk. Jimmy asked her questions about herself sent in by fans. These are not professionally polished productions. But they are so creative. And the viewers get to know Jimmy’s family and what his house is like. These shows have brought his viewers closer into his life, even though they, and we, are somewhat confined to our homes. The shows are intimate and authentic. I have to say that watching the Tonight Show: At Home Edition has been life giving. When we get through all of this and production of the show starts up again, I think I’m going to miss these at home editions. I sort of hope that Jimmy keeps doing some bits from home going forward. Rather than relying on reruns, Jimmy Fallon set his mind on continuing to produce something that is creative, uplifting, funny, and relevant to the moment we are in. He set his mind not on the flesh, but on the Spirit.

            Jimmy Fallon is not the only person who has been producing shows from home. Probably like most of you I spend a good share of my time watching the news. I like to watch Squawk on the Street on CNBC in the morning to see where the stock market is going to go that day. I watch the local news. And for the past week or so the people on these news shows have not all been in the studio together. Again, most of the news people are working at their homes. Take the local news program for an example. You have one anchor in the studio. But their partner anchor will be at their home. The weather reporter does their weather report from their home. The sports reporter, who doesn’t really have a lot of sports news to report on, are giving their report from home. These news programs are putting into practice the social separation that we are encouraged to do. Instead of having one person in the studio trying to deliver all the news by themselves, the team keeps performing their roles in a different way. It is a creative way to continue to deliver the news. And, again, it opens up a bit of intimacy as the viewers get a glimpse into what these homes of these newscasters live in look like. Far from the glare of the stage lights and the sterile set of a news studio, we get to watch our news anchors and weather reporters in less than ideal lighting and with the occasional lag that those of us who have been on zoom meetings lately can relate to. The news continues to be delivered in a creative way that is shaped by this health crisis we are in. Their minds are not on the flesh, but on the Spirit.

            I was talking to a church member recently, just checking in to see how she was doing. She made a great observation. She expressed her gratitude that this general quarantine is happening in the spring and not in the dead of winter. So, at least you can get out of the house and get some fresh air rather than stay cooped up. So true. Last Sunday, Kim and I took our puppy Oliver for a walk. It was a bright, sunny day. There were so many people out for a walk. Of course, everyone was maintaining appropriate social distancing from other groups. But it was so great to see everyone out walking around instead of sitting at home watching sports or whatever else. Tuesday evening, I was sitting in my backyard enjoying the comfortable temperature and reading a book. I heard a number of my neighbors out, greeting each other, kids laughing and carrying on, dogs barking. The neighborhood was alive with people out of their homes and connecting with each other. It was such a sweet sound. I look out the window and see the first dandelions coming up in my front yard. I have some neighbors who mowed their lawns the past few days. Daffodils and crocuses are popping up. Trees are starting to bud out. Robins are poking around in the yard. We as a community are contending with this deadly virus but that doesn’t stop the signs of spring from bursting forth all around us, oblivious to the health crisis we are in. It’s reassuring that even the coronavirus cannot stop spring from coming. As we look around us and see new life all around us, our minds are not on the flesh, but on the Spirit.

            Then there are all the ways churches, like ours, have been trying to come up with ways to stay connected when we can’t be together in one room. So many zoom meetings. Kim asked me a few days ago, half joking, if we should be investing in zoom stock. Kim has been doing virtual yoga through zoom. One time she was attending a virtual yoga session in which the teacher wasn’t even in Ohio. Back to Jimmy Fallon, he had a zoom interview with a popular songwriter who was in his apartment in London. Another time he interviewed a celebrity from his home in Columbia. Geography is irrelevant in these zoom meetings. Plus, there is a reduction in carbon emissions of course because you can have a zoom meeting with someone in London instead of having that person fly to New York. You can have a zoom meeting with your colleagues rather than have ten people drive to a central location to meet. It’s actually better for the environment by having all these zoom meetings. They take some getting used to. If you don’t have a great internet connection the video can get pretty choppy and sometimes everything freezes up. But, still, people can at least see each other and talk through things. Extended families or groups of friends are having zoom meetings in the evening to talk. A few days ago, I “Facetimed” my sister instead of talking to her on the phone, just to see her. She got Covid-19 by the way. The virus circulated through her church choir before they started cancelling everything and several of her fellow choir members got sick. She had a rough few days, but she is much better now. But as I think about all these zoom meetings that are happening, making geographic separation irrelevant and dramatically reducing carbon emissions by not driving or flying anywhere to get to a meeting, it makes me wonder if when this crisis is over we may decide that zoom meetings are more environmentally responsible. I wonder if that is the spiritually minded and life-giving thing to do.

            Dr. Amy Acton, the state public health director, has been a rock the past few weeks. She and our governor and lieutenant governor have provided steady and responsive leadership that I think for many of us has been quite reassuring. A few times, Dr. Acton has talked about the many innovations that are being developed right now to respond to this once-in-a-lifetime pandemic. We have seen tele-health be expanded dramatically which is extending health care to folks. Factories are being retrofitted to build ventilators. Distilleries are halting production of spirits in order to make hand sanitizer. Battele has developed a method to sanitize surgical masks to extend their usage. In so many ways, industries and businesses are responding to this crisis in new and innovative ways. Like the old saying goes, necessity is the mother of invention. What innovations will emerge that will stay with us when the crisis passes? How will we reconsider our manufacturing sector so that we are less dependent on other nations to produce critical resources in our own country? Look at the recent stimulus package passed by congress making it possible for independent contractors, 1099 workers, Uber drivers and the like, to apply for unemployment. In what ways will our social safety net be evaluated and strengthened as this crisis brings to light the disparity of resources and support structures? If our minds are set not on the flesh, but on the Spirit, how might we come out of this crisis as a society more healthy and strong and secure? Who would have thought, in a year that many, including myself, thought would be a year of great division driven by our partisan politics and the presidential election, instead find ourselves pulling together to respond to a virus that cannot be bullied or tweeted down into submission. Instead of setting our minds on the flesh of partisanship and acrimony we find ourselves setting our minds on the Spirit of collaboration and solidarity.

            We have a challenging road ahead. If the projections are reasonable, the next few months will be a test to our health systems and governmental systems, infrastructure, and who else knows what. We don’t know how long this struggle will last, or if the spread will ease up during the summer only to ramp up again in the fall. In the face of these challenging and uncertain times, we can make the choice to set our minds on the Spirit, on life, on peace, on creativity. By setting our minds on the Spirit, I am confident that we as a society will come out of this stronger than we were before we entered into this. As we journey through this valley of the shadow of death, our minds set firmly on Jesus, we will come through on the other side as the Spirit, that dwells in us, gives life to our mortal bodies also.

The Lord is Our Shepherd

Based on Psalm 23
First delivered Mar. 22, 2020
Rev. Dr. Kevin Orr 

            I had planned to base this week’s message on Ephesians 5. As the week went along, so much time was spent on consulting with colleagues, calling parishioners, listening to the latest updates on the coronavirus, processing information and making decisions, that by Friday morning I had barely started on my message. I had read through Ephesians 5 a number of times. But, honestly, nothing was coming to me. The season we are going through right now overwhelmed my thoughts, and nothing in that passage was speaking to me. So, I looked to see what the other lectionary options were for this Sunday. I was drawn to Psalm 23. The unfolding of this pandemic has been very challenging to all of us. Psalm 23 speaks to me a word of comfort and promise during this difficult time. I want to reflect with you on this beloved psalm with the hope that you will be encouraged as we journey together through this pandemic.

            “The Lord is my shepherd.” This is a reminder to me that I am not the shepherd. Jesus is. The pastor, who is in a position of leadership, is sometimes considered to be the shepherd of her flock. I get that. I understand that part of the role of pastor is to be a shepherd, to provide guidance, to oversee the congregation. But any pastor will tell you, serving as a pastor during a global pandemic such as this is a new experience. I have heard our governor say a number of times that when he lies down at night he asks himself if he has done enough. I assure you, there are a lot of pastors who are wondering the same thing. What eases the pressure for me is to remember that the Lord is the shepherd. I can do what I can and it will have to be enough for today. “I shall not want.” Our shepherd gives us what we need when we need it. The comfort and strength we all need comes from our trust in God, and not in our own strength. With the Lord as our shepherd we shall not be in want.

            These are stressful times and a lot is being asked of all of us as we make dramatic shifts in our daily life for a season. The shepherd is there to guide all of us through these unchartered times, this journey that none of us know how long will take. As a shepherd guides the sheep along, so our shepherd is with us on this journey to guide us. We are not left to wander aimlessly through this time of crisis. The shepherd, through the guidance of the Holy Spirit, is leading. We can follow that lead by paying attention to what the Spirit is saying to us. In a recent blog by Pastor Sara, our assistant D.S., she said that if you think it and feel it, act on it. For example, if you think about your neighbor, check on them. If you notice something is off with a co-worker during a zoom call, follow up. When you feel anxiety building, reach out to someone you love and trust and talk about it. I would say that this is how the shepherd leads us by the Spirit through this time of crisis, by influencing what we think and feel, and by giving us the motivation to act in appropriate ways.

            “God makes me lie down in green pastures and leads me beside still waters.” I have noticed this in my life as I start each day fresh. And even to an extent when I get to bed at night. The in between times are full of anxiety, decision making, trying to focus on the matter at hand, taking care of daily responsibilities. But at bedtime, and when I first get up in the morning, the Lord is giving me rest. Each day, before jumping in to all that lies ahead, I am receiving the grace to begin the day with some quiet. I ease in to the day. At the time that the sun begins to rise, I go outside to greet the morning. For about fifteen minutes, I stay outside, standing or sitting, and I take some deep breaths. I get grounded in my body by feeling the ground under my feet, by noticing any tightness anywhere in my body. I try to still my mind, let thoughts pass through, be still, and ask God to give me a word that I need. It is usually a short phrase like, “stay focused” or “give yourself to others” or “rest”. I end the time with gratitude for another day. These fifteen minutes of greeting the morning has been like lying down in green pastures. It restores my soul. As the day goes on and we work through all we are having to deal with, new and unforeseen challenges, it is wearying. The Lord is leading us, which means we are not standing still. We are in motion. We are on a journey. But when bedtime comes and we can lie down and rest in God’s arms, it is then that God is able to restore our souls so that we will be ready for the next day in our journey.

            The Lord guides us along right paths for God’s sake. It is not an easy path. Canceling public worship is not an easy path. Engaging modern technology as well as utilizing old fashion technology, like the phone and mailing cards, is not an easy path. Dreaming new ways to do worship while physically separated, doing Easter worship in a dispersed way, how to do that, is not an easy path. But these are the right paths that the shepherd is leading us along. It is right and it is good even though it is hard. It is going to give God glory as we more intentionally stay connected with each other. We take for granted seeing each other on Sunday morning or for Bible Study on Wednesday to catch up with each other. And it isn’t just our church friends. We have co-workers or other social groups that we hang out with. Now we have to be more intentional. Social distancing doesn’t mean social isolation. But how to do that takes intentionality. And I wonder if this challenge to be more intentional will develop in us habits that will carry forward once this crisis comes to an end and we no longer have to practice social distancing. I am curious how the habits we develop now will achieve what God has intended for us all along.  And I have been thinking as we put expressions of worship on the internet, it actually takes our worship out of the building and into the virtual public square. By putting worship online, it makes worship even more accessible for those who choose not to or cannot attend worship when we have it in our buildings. We potentially reach more people with our worship when we do it digitally. To God be the glory. To expand our worship out to the virtual public square is the right path to be on. And God will get the glory.

            There have been times over the past few weeks where I have been inspired and energized, especially when I have been talking with colleagues about new ways to do worship and stay connected with our congregations, and as I have thought about and acted on more intentionally being connected with all of you by methodically working through the church directories and calling you. If you haven’t heard from me yet, be patient. I’m getting to you. Having those brief conversations with you has been great. And then there have been times where I feel overwhelmed, when I feel like I’m not doing enough. The grief of not having public worship on Easter for the first time in my life weighs very heavily on my heart as I know it weighs on so many others. It is a collective weight of grief. It is likened to walking through the valley of the shadow of death. The right path that the shepherd is leading us on includes walking through these valleys. This is not a diversion. The feeling of overwhelm and of not being able to do enough is not an experience of wandering off the right path. It is part of the journey that we are being led through. Acknowledging that those moments of walking through the valley with Jesus who is leading us through it helps in resisting fear. Why be afraid when it is God that is leading us into and through that valley? The valley of shadow is part of the journey that God is leading us through. God is with us. God makes a way for us through those shadowy, heavy, fearful moments. God is leading us through this part of the journey where worshipping on Easter will be different. There is no need to be afraid because God is leading us through this.

            “You spread a table before me in the presence of my enemies.” What are the enemies that we are facing? The virus, obviously. But also we face anxiety, the debilitation of uncertainty, the weariness of dealing with the disruptions, the tediousness of listening to people cast blame and be critical of the response to the pandemic, the ambient noise of panic, all these things that sap our energy, that distract us from focusing on and trusting the lead of the Spirit, that take our minds off of what we can be grateful for, that twists our thinking and feeling about the situation we are in that leads to actions that are not helpful. These are the enemies we face. And we face them with God. God anoints our heads with oil and fills our cups to overflowing, the psalmist says. In other words, we are God’s children. God cares for us and supports us. God provides all we need. God loves us. I came across this simple method we can use when the anxiety builds. It is the halt method. “H” stands for “hungry.” Are you hungry? When was the last time you ate? “A” stands for “angry.” Are you upset? Do you need to step away for a minute to calm down? “L” stands for “lonely.” Are you feeling isolated? Do you need to reach out and call a friend? “T” stands for “tired.” Do you need to take a break? Can you make time for a nap? I commend the halt method. When the anxiety builds, we can also use our imaginations. Imagine your head being anointed with oil by God. Sometimes in church we are invited to come forward to be anointed with oil by the sign of the cross on our foreheads. Imagine God doing that for you. Imagine holding a cup of blessing that is overflowing with the blessings of God. Remember that God is with us. Rest in the presence of God.

            “Goodness and mercy will follow me all the days of my life.” Goodness and mercy doesn’t just follow us. A more accurate translation of the Hebrew would be that God’s goodness and mercy pursues us. It chases us down. When we journey day by day, and somehow wander off the right path that God intends to lead us on, it is God, out of goodness and mercy, who pursues us, who chases us down, to guide us back on the right path. This is our assurance in these uncertain times. The Spirit is leading us right now. But we can get distracted. We can be tempted to wander off this path we are on. We can be tempted to just check out. The one who leads us isn’t so far ahead of us that the shepherd doesn’t notice our wandering off. The shepherd chases after us. The shepherd responds to where we are and leads us back on the right path, the path that ultimately leads to “the house of the Lord.” And that means more than leading us back to public worship in our buildings. Yes, a church building is sometimes called the house of the Lord. But the house of the Lord that the psalmist is talking about is the house in which we will dwell forever. He is talking about our heavenly home, the place we will eventually get to because of the promise of eternal life.

            We are on a journey. And this journey has all kinds of twists and turns. And no one saw the coronavirus coming along. Our journey has taken an unexpected turn. But our shepherd is still with us. Our shepherd is caring for us and strengthening our souls. Our shepherd is guiding us on the right path, even when that path takes us through the valley of the shadow of death, even when that path brings us into contact with the enemies that seek to suck the life right out of us. Our shepherd anoints us, blesses us, pursues us with goodness and mercy. Our shepherd is leading us home. We will get there…together.

God Makes Things Right

“God Makes Things Right”
Based on Rom. 5:1-11
First delivered Mar. 15, 2020
Rev. Dr. Kevin Orr 

            Reconciliation: to re-conciliate, to make things right. Reconciliation is one of those big words that names a number of experiences in our lives that can be quite meaningful, even transformative. Reconciliation is right up there with peacemaking, restoration of relationships, burying the hatchet, starting fresh with a clean slate. Reconciliation is one of those experiences that can potentially be some of the most important moments of our lives.

            Of course, not every experience of reconciliation is life altering. Those of us who sit down with our bank statement every month to reconcile the statement with our checkbook knows that this is not a life altering moment. Hopefully it is a short and tedious couple of minutes to go through and make sure that there are no crazy charges showing up on your bank statement. The most alarming thing that could happen when you are doing this reconciliation is if you find some fraudulent charges. Then you have to go through the process of contesting the charges, changing your account number, and so forth. Most of the time, this reconciliation process is pretty painless and doesn’t require a lot of intentionality or effort.

            Another way reconciliation is experienced is after a time of war, especially a civil war. You and I have not had this experience of reconciliation. One somewhat recent example of this I am aware of is in South Africa when Apartheid was ended and the nation had to come to terms with the ravages of the racist policies that pitted the minority white population with the majority black population. The violence and hatred that was stirred up during Apartheid had to be exposed and healed so that South Africa could move forward as a nation when Apartheid came to an end. In an effort to bring healing to the nation, a Truth and Reconciliation Commission was established. This commission provided a process in which those in power who enforced Apartheid could come forward and confess what they did, to speak the truth of the harm they perpetrated and publicly acknowledge that what they did was wrong. Rather than sweep it all under the rug and move on, a deliberate process was set up so that the truth could be told so that reconciliation would be possible. This is a dramatic and intense experience of reconciliation, attempting to heal the wounds of a nation.

            For most of us, reconciliation is mostly an experience of repairing a relationship that has been harmed in some way. By words or deeds, either you have hurt someone or they have hurt you. And the hurt is deep enough that it drives you two apart. The relationship has been harmed. For that relationship to be healed, a process of reconciliation has to be worked through. The first step, of course, is to acknowledge that harm has been done. Next, the one who did the harm, having acknowledged it, resolves to try to make things right. Over time, hopefully the hurt feelings can ease and the two can be friends again. It may not happen overnight. The relationship may never return to the way it was before the harm. Reconciliation is not guaranteed. But, by working the process, reconciliation is possible. Relationships can be restored.

            Whether it is two friends who have been hurt or a nation that has been ripped apart by strife, the process is the same. The one who has done wrong has to own up to what they have done. And remember, in most situations, both parties in the dispute can likely name harm that they have committed. The harm must be named. Next, the one who did the harm has to try to make things right as best as it can be. And, of course, somewhere along the way the one who did the harm has to ask for forgiveness and hope that the one who has been offended will accept the forgiveness and extend a hand so that the relationship can be restored. This is the process of reconciliation. And it doesn’t always have a happy ending.

            Then, there is another broken relationship that is deep and profound. It is the broken relationship between God and creation. Specifically, the rupture in the relationship between God and humanity because of the virus of sin. We talked a few weeks ago about how sin is like a virus which infects every human being, distorting who God has created us to be, dis-ordering our relationship with God, with one another, and with ourselves. Yes, we have free will. We are responsible for our own actions. We can’t say, “sin made me do it.” But sin does influence what we do. We are ultimately responsible for our actions. What we say and do corrupted by sin is an offense to God. The level of offense each of us has perpetrated on God and on God’s creation is truly immeasurable. The rupture between us and God is vast. We don’t even know, much less have the capacity to confess, all the offense we have perpetrated against God. There is no way that we can make things right. When it comes to reconciling our relationship with God, it is not possible for us to fix it.

            Have you ever had the experience where the pain the other person inflicted on you was so great, the hurt so deep, that mending the relationship was hopeless? It’s one thing if it’s just an acquaintance or a co-worker. But if it is a spouse, a parent, a child…that is a hard thing to carry. Sometimes the parting of ways is necessary. Self-protection and self-respect dictate the need to end abusive relationships, to at the minimum physically separate from each other, but also even emotionally separating for your own health. Regrettably, many of us will in our lifetimes have to acknowledge the necessity to end relationships, that there are some relationships that cannot be reconciled.

            Paul says that our relationship with God was like that. Our offensive actions against God was so great that the relationship was beyond repair. There was nothing we could do to make it right. When it came to mending our relationship with God, we were without hope. And God would not have this. God’s love for us is so great, so deep, so vast, that God was determined that nothing would prevent reconciliation from taking place. Even though God is the offended one, God determined to take the initiative and do what was necessary to make things right. Through some great mystery, God closed the gap in our broken relationship through the death of Jesus on the cross. Theologians have tried to explain in a number of ways exactly how the death of Jesus on the cross fixed our relationship with God. We will never know for sure how this works. But we can affirm that God, the offended one, extended amazing grace by acting through Jesus in a decisive way to make things right. By God’s own force of will God reconciled all of humanity to Godself. As far as God is concerned, we have been reconciled with God. We couldn’t fix it. So, God fixed it for us through Jesus.

            If our relationship with God was a check register, and we are $1 million off from what the bank statement says we should be, it is as if the bank sat down and credited our account $1 million so that our check register balanced. We could never repay that debt. So, it was covered for us. This is the amazing grace of God, the love that God continues to pour into our hearts day by day. God’s grace is like a constant infusion of credit into our relational bank account with God. Sin is still working in us. We spend our whole lives resisting its influence. And we fail regularly. We offend God daily. And the grace of God never stops applying grace to our offense.

            To top all this off, Paul teaches us that if God has paid such a high price by offering God’s son on the cross so that we could be reconciled with God, it would be the height of folly for God to then abandon us to the wrath we deserve. Paul believed a day will come, a day of judgment when God would pour God’s wrath on God’s enemies: the great and terrible day of the Lord. It is a punishment we all deserve for our offense toward God and God’s creation. We deserve God’s wrath. But if God has paid such a price to reconcile our relationship, why would God then pour God’s wrath on us? If God was going to do that, why would God have paid such a huge price to make things right? God has invested too much in each of us to at the end of the day walk away from us and destroy us in God’s rage. Besides, God loves us too much to do such a thing. In other words, Paul is saying we can have confidence in the hope that because of Jesus we will not suffer God’s wrath. Our future with God is secure. God will never abandon us or forsake us. This is our good news.

            “Karen”, not her real name, had given up on God. Her husband came out as gay. They belonged to a church that understood being gay as a sickness that needed cured. Karen and her husband went to a therapist the church recommended to cure her husband of his gayness. No surprise. It didn’t work. They got divorced. The church Karen belonged to also saw divorce as a sin, just like being gay. They did not support her divorce. Karen lost her husband. She lost her church. And she threw up her hands and gave up on God.

            Karen was in a situation where she felt God had wronged her, treated her unfairly. She linked God with the church. The church hurt her deeply. So, God hurt her deeply. She wanted nothing to do with church, with Jesus, with God, none of it. She had been hurt by God at the hands of God’s church. She was the offended one.

            Many years later, Karen was diagnosed with breast cancer. During surgery, when she was having a mastectomy performed, her heart stopped briefly. They were able to get her heart pumping again and were able to complete the procedure. Karen said that during her surgery she saw the bright light at the end of the tunnel that people talk about in after death experiences. Karen came back to life. She felt like God had given her a second chance. So, she seized it.

            Now Karen is deeply committed to God. She came to realize that the church she belonged to did not adequately reflect the heart of God. Karen has found her calling in life. She has dedicated herself to create inter-generational and ethnically diverse communities, safe spaces, where people can tell their stories, where stereotypes and misunderstandings can be overcome, so that strangers, even those at enmity with each other, can become friends. Karen has adopted as her life calling a ministry of reconciliation. This ministry emerged from her own profound experience of being reconciled with God.

            Karen went through a difficult and painful experience. Each of us go through things, endure painful experiences and broken relationships. We live through disappointments and sometimes even betrayal. We may even experience a sense of disappointment and even betrayal at the hands of God. Not everyone gets over their anger toward God for what they perceive God has inflicted on them. But, in time, Karen was able to get to a different place in her relationship with God. She got to the place where she could affirm what Paul is saying in Romans 5. There is one relationship that we can trust. It is our relationship with God, who has done all that is necessary to reconcile us, to make right our relationship. From a place of love and grace, God has acted to make things right between us. God has and continues to forgive us of our sin. God has and continues to stretch out God’s hand, to spread wide God’s arms so that we can respond with gratitude and confidence. We can trust that God loves us, no matter what. Nothing can separate us from the love of God, not even our sin, because of what Jesus accomplished on the cross.

            This can be our hope, a source of strength and confidence, as we move through our days. All of us share a common relationship with God, a reconciled relationship. We all are loved by God and there is nothing any of us can do about it. This is one thing that we all have in common. It is this reality of God’s love for each one of us that can serve as a foundation to reconcile with each other where there are broken relationships, by affirming God’s mutual love for each one of us. It is this foundation of mutual love that grounds us in our mutual task of reconciliation. It isn’t easy. And not every relationship can be fixed. But the fact that God loves every person provides a baseline, a foundation, on which we can establish loving relationships with others. At the bare minimum, we can respond with empathy toward others in their time of need because they too are loved by God. They too are persons for whom Christ died. They too are persons of sacred worth. We don’t have to be friends with everybody. We don’t have to agree on everything. Social distancing serves a purpose besides preventing the spread of the coronavirus. But it is not a small thing to affirm that person is someone for whom Christ died and whom God has reconciled with because of God’s unstoppable love for that person. Let’s not lose sight of this incredible faith claim that Paul is making for us in Romans chapter 5.