Sermon for Easter 6

Easter 6
May 9, 2010
John 16:23-33
In me you may have peace

In the name of Jesus, amen. In our gospel lesson this morning we find again the great joy of God’s living Word- that the Bible is just as relevant today as it has ever been. When people are seeking to create their own story and tell those stories, the Christian has the pure joy of living the story of the Bible. The story of the Bible is a full story of lost and found, of darkness and light, of sin and forgiveness, of the Christian who lives because of the Christ. Today Jesus tells his disciples, “In me you may have peace. In the world you will have tribulation. But take heart, I have overcome the world.”

The disciples were filled with turmoil, because at this moment in their lives, Jesus was letting them know that their world was going to be turned upside down. Jesus is building them up so they may endure the time when Jesus would be lifted up on the cross. Jesus has gathered his disciples together because the time is coming when they would be scattered.

And the disciples could not imagine living in a world without Jesus. But the unimaginable would become very real as Jesus would be betrayed and arrested. They will watch, some close up, some from a distance, but they would see the trial, the mockery, the beating, the blood. They would see the nails and the thorns, the crucifixion and the death. They could ask themselves, “What is the world coming to? How could this happen? What is going to happen next? If Christ could be crucified like that, what is in store for us?”

Those are all very important questions, questions that reveal the real fear and terror that existed for the followers of Jesus. And those were questions that Jesus had addressed with great reassurance.

But take heart; I have overcome the world. Though the Passion had not yet started, the outcome was certain. Jesus had resolutely set his face toward Jerusalem, knowing what the will of His Father was: that Jesus should carry the sins of the whole world, die for the forgiveness of those sins, and then be raised again.

Jesus had overcome the world- all of its temptations, all of its powerful allure, all of its wide and easy paths. Jesus was on the path to Calvary and would not be deterred. On this path he drew his beloved followers to him and he taught them and he loved them to the end. In me you may have peace. In the world you will have trouble. But I have overcome the world. Take heart. Buck up. Be steadfast and immovable in me.

Take heart. Buck up. Be steadfast and immovable. Those are the statements of our loving Lord to us.

Our hearts grow faint. Fear overshadows our courage. We are blown by all the winds that swirl around us and we do not stand steadfast. But Jesus has given us the certain confidence of our futures. We ask what the world is coming to and we are so uncertain about our future. We are bombarded with news of car bombs in time square, with the news that the spot on our lungs in that MRI is malignant, that our Parkinsons is advancing, that our services are no longer going to be required at work once this project is complete. What is my world coming to as my relationship with my children continues to spiral out of control, as my relationship with my spouse is so different from what it used to be? What is my future going to be if my parents die, if my spouse dies? What will the future be for my family if I were to die?

Too often we attempt to answer those questions apart from Christ. People make predictions. We make predictions. You’ve heard the old phrase that we make plans and God laughs. I think it was the Chicago Tribune that declared Dewey the winner over Harry S Truman back in 1948. All sorts of predictions and guesses are made that now can be found in the dust heap of history. In our Tuesday evening Bible study we are about ready to hear a man named Gamaliel declare to the other Pharisees that if what Peter and John and the other apostles are doing is of human origin, it will fail. But if it is from God, there is nothing on earth that will be able to stop it.

Apart from Christ, separated from that holy relationship with God, all we do is make guesses and predictions. Surely we’d have to be uncertain about our future without remembering the words of Christ and the actions of our Redeemer.

In me you may have peace. Those words of Christ really fly in the face of what is taking place. We agonize over our future, over our family’s future, where we will live and what job we will hold. That agonizing takes place while we worry about the condition of our state and country and her economy and security. But we need to block those dark thoughts from our mind so the Holy Spirit can remind us of what Jesus said- In me you may have peace.

Peace is not found in a paycheck. Peace does not reside in property values. Peace does not depend on a wireless broadband tower. Peace does not simply mean the absence of fighting or strife and you cannot find peace in a hammock or on your couch. Peace is found in Jesus.

The world has been overcome by the cross. The sins that plague and terrorize us have been swallowed up by the open grave. Jesus has been able to say to each and every one of us, “I have overcome the world.” So we sit in the doctor’s office, chewing our finger nails to the quick knowing that Jesus is with us. We show up at work and do what is given us to do, praying the Spirit of God would use me to serve my boss and the client. We clearly know God’s purpose for our life as we stand at the changing table, looking down at our child, knowing that God’s purpose for my life is right in front of my eyes and sometimes in my nostrils. We patiently sit at the dining room table helping our children and grandchildren with their homework. We go to bed at night with the voice of prayer on our lips, praying for our families, for our friends, for our enemies, for our great joys and for all that troubles us, knowing that God desires our prayer, that He hears them and that He responds.

In Christ, you may have peace. We are in Christ. We were baptized into him, baptized into his death, so that just as Jesus was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, so too will we be raised to newness of life.

This is an uncertain world, with lots of turmoil and trouble. Yet the Christian knows what to do! Pray!

Whatever you ask the Father in my name he will give it to you. Ask, and you will receive, that your joy may be full. Jesus has given us direct access to the Father. We are in Christ and the Father’s ear is turned toward us. For the Father himself loves you, because you have loved me and have believed that I came from God.

Our Redeemer says that in me you may have peace. True peace, not that comes from the world, but from the creator of the world, from the savior of the world, and from the Spirit who guides us through this blessed world. In me you may have peace. May God grant it! SDG