‘Come no closer! Remove the sandals from your feet,
for the place on which you are standing is holy ground.’ Exodus 3:5
Lectionary readings
Acts 7:55-60 Psalm 31:1-5, 15-16, 1 Peter 2:2-10, John 14:1-14
Risen Christ,
for whom no door is locked, no entrance barred:
open the doors of our hearts,
that we may seek the good of others
and walk the joyful road of sacrifice and peace,
to the praise of God the Father. Amen
In John’s Gospel, the fifty day period between Easter and Pentecost is chronologically contracted in these few short verses:
Jesus Appears to the Disciples
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.’ 20After he said this, he showed them his hands and his side. Then the disciples rejoiced when they saw the Lord. 21Jesus said to them again, ‘Peace be with you. As the Father has sent me, so I send you.’ 22When he had said this, he breathed on them and said to them, ‘Receive the Holy Spirit. 23If you forgive the sins of any, they are forgiven them; if you retain the sins of any, they are retained.’ John 20:19-23
The risen Christ greets the disciples, and confirms his identity, and on the basis of the evidence they have seen, the disciples are overjoyed; then they receive a commission (20:21) and the gift of the Holy Spirit (20:22-23).
If the church is people and not buildings, then the company of disciples now linked by all kinds of social media, still constitute the church. Yet more importantly than novel new ways of meeting, the body of believers has always been joined together by the Holy Spirit around the Risen Christ.
The reading from the second letter of Peter describes this church as living stones, a spiritual house, a holy priesthood based on Christ the cornerstone.
Sadly, I must confess to an enjoyment of reading the thesaurus and the entry for ‘cornerstone begins’: foundation, basis, keystone, mainspring, mainstay, bedrock, base; core, heart, focus … (you really could play around with these thoughts for hours!)
This is critical, as the living stones really need to be aware of the mainstay of faith when all traditional signposts are removed. The heart of Christian living, as described in today’s readings, is the assurance that it is Christ’s life, death and resurrection which brings the believer into a new relationship with Jesus.
Whilst the writer of Peter’s letter drew for inspiration on Psalm 118:22-23, the words in John’s Gospel also highlight the foundational nature of a relationship with God through Jesus Christ for those who would be disciples. This dialogue is set before going to Jerusalem, and is usually described as part of the farewell discourse. That is to say, Jesus is already making preparation to go to Jerusalem and face the inevitable consequences. He is undoubtedly preparing to die, and is encouraging the disciples to let go of any preconceived notions they may hold about the messiah. Shannon Michael Pater writes:
When their hopeful visions for a just and peaceful messianic kingdom melt in the crucible of crucifixion, the hearts of the disciples will be diseased—and their anxiety will be blinding.[1]
Into that anxiety, Jesus offers words of comfort and assurance:
‘Do not let your hearts be troubled. Believe in God, believe also in me. 2In 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?3And 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. 4And you know the way to the place where I am going.’ John 14:1-4
In this promise is mention of a place – my Father’s house; and a mention of movement – there is a journey to be made. There is no map reference, or preferred route, instead Jesus offers himself; not merely as a companion, but as the way.
In this promise, is the subtle hint that the abiding presence is found in Jesus Christ, who is full of grace and truth. It is only a subtle hint because the English phrase ‘dwelling place’ translatesmonē, which in Greek can mean the physical place -mansion, the home, the abode; but it also carries the action‘to abide’. This theme will be beautifully expounded in the following chapter that describes Jesus as the true vine (John 15).
So, we are invited to entered and remain within the divine presence.
When Moses found himself in the divine presence (see Genesis 3:1-15), he could have no idea where this encounter would lead him. Moses only knew the name of his God and that the promise was that ‘I will be with you’.
Paul Tillich wrote: If Jesus says, “I am the truth,” he indicates that in him the true, the genuine, the ultimate reality is present; or, in other words, that God is present, unveiled, undistorted, in his infinite depth, in his unapproachable mystery.[2]
The main theme here – as throughout the Gospel of John – is that eternal life is not about a time and space, but about what happens when you follow the way of God, when you know the truth about God. For participation in God IS eternal life.
When talking about being the door to the sheepfold and the good shepherd, Jesus tells us:
I give them eternal life, and they will never perish. No one will snatch them out of my hand. (John 10:28)
Or again:
And this is eternal life, that they may know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom you have sent. (John17:2-3)
I am the way, the truth, the life is a rich foundational invitation into a new relationship with the living God.
O scar-clad Lord, our way, truth and life: In strange and unknown pathways through life, guard us, guide us, keep us, feed us. Remind us that the unknown is as sacred as the well-trodden, so guard us, guide us, keep us, feed us. For all who have lost their way, or whose path seems difficult and frightening guard and guide them. For those who must spend long hours each day queuing for food, keep and feed them. For all providing support and comfort, guard them, guide them, keep them, feed them. For those who now see you face to face, we give thanks that you have been for them the way, truth and life. And for all who mourn, help them to look to a yet more glorious day. And now, may God the Father lead you through the wilderness, God the Son surround your path with light, and God the Holy Spirit lead you into all truth. And the blessing of Almighty God, three in one be with you. Amen
[1]Shannon Michael Pater, In Feasting on the Word year A vol 2, (Louisville: Westminster John-Knox,2011) 468
[2]Paul Tillich’s The New Being, chapter.8 ‘What is Truth?’:
Worship at home 