Sixth Sunday of Easter 17th May 2020 John 14: 17- 21

Sentence

‘Those who love me will keep my word,’ Jesus promises, 

‘and my Father will love them, and we will come to them 

and make our home with them.’ John 14: 23

Collect: Prayer of the Day

O God, you have prepared for those who love you joys beyond our understanding:

pour into our hearts such love for you, that, loving you above all else,

we may obtain your promises that exceed all we can desire;

through Jesus Christ our Lord, who is alive and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, 

one God, for ever and ever. Amen.  

Acts 17: 22-31

22 Then Paul stood in front of the Areopagus and said, ‘Athenians, I see how extremely religious you are in every way. 
23 For as I went through the city and looked carefully at the objects of your worship, I found among them an altar with the inscription, “To an unknown god.” What therefore you worship as unknown, this I proclaim to you. 
24 The God who made the world and everything in it, he who is Lord of heaven and earth, does not live in shrines made by human hands, 
25 nor is he served by human hands, as though he needed anything, since he himself gives to all mortals life and breath and all things. 
26 From one ancestor he made all nations to inhabit the whole earth, and he allotted the times of their existence and the boundaries of the places where they would live, 
27 so that they would search for God and perhaps grope for him and find him—though indeed he is not far from each one of us. 
28 For “In him we live and move and have our being”; as even some of your own poets have said,
“For we too are his offspring.” 
29 Since we are God’s offspring, we ought not to think that the deity is like gold, or silver, or stone, an image formed by the art and imagination of mortals. 
30 While God has overlooked the times of human ignorance, now he commands all people everywhere to repent, 
31 because he has fixed a day on which he will have the world judged in righteousness by a man whom he has appointed, and of this he has given assurance to all by raising him from the dead.’

1 Peter 3: 8-22

8 Finally, all of you, have unity of spirit, sympathy, love for one another, a tender heart, and a humble mind. 
9 Do not repay evil for evil or abuse for abuse; but, on the contrary, repay with a blessing. It is for this that you were called—that you might inherit a blessing. 
10 For ‘Those who desire life and desire to see good days,  let them keep their tongues from evil and their lips from speaking deceit; 
11 let them turn away from evil and do good;
     let them seek peace and pursue it. 
12 For the eyes of the Lord are on the righteous,
     and his ears are open to their prayer.
But the face of the Lord is against those who do evil.’ 
13 Now who will harm you if you are eager to do what is good? 
14 But even if you do suffer for doing what is right, you are blessed. Do not fear what they fear, and do not be intimidated, 
15 but in your hearts sanctify Christ as Lord. Always be ready to make your defence to anyone who demands from you an account of the hope that is in you; 
16 yet do it with gentleness and reverence. Keep your conscience clear, so that, when you are maligned, those who abuse you for your good conduct in Christ may be put to shame. 
17 For it is better to suffer for doing good, if suffering should be God’s will, than to suffer for doing evil. 
18 For Christ also suffered for sins once for all, the righteous for the unrighteous, in order to bring you to God. He was put to death in the flesh, but made alive in the spirit, 
19 in which also he went and made a proclamation to the spirits in prison, 
20 who in former times did not obey, when God waited patiently in the days of Noah, during the building of the ark, in which a few, that is, eight people, were saved through water. 
21 And baptism, which this prefigured, now saves you—not as a removal of dirt from the body, but as an appeal to God for a good conscience, through the resurrection of Jesus Christ, 
22 who has gone into heaven and is at the right hand of God, with angels, authorities, and powers made subject to him.

The Gospel according to John 14: 15-21

15 ‘If you love me, you will keep my commandments. 16 And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Advocate, to be with you for ever. 17 This is the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it neither sees him nor knows him. You know him, because he abides with you, and he will be in you. 18 ‘I will not leave you orphaned; I am coming to you. 19 In a little while the world will no longer see me, but you will see me; because I live, you also will live. 20 On that day you will know that I am in my Father, and you in me, and I in you.21 They who have my commandments and keep them are those who love me; and those who love me will be loved by my Father, and I will love them and reveal myself to them.’

Reflection: Today as I reflect on the word before us, I am drawn to the book of Acts for several reasons.

Paul continues his second missionary journey, moving from Philippi to Thessalonica and finally to Athens. In this important Greek city, Paul proclaims the gospel - "the good news about Jesus and the resurrection." As usual, he goes first to the local synagogue, after which we find him in the "marketplace day by day." The local philosophers then invite him to speak of his beliefs at the Areopagus.

One of the things that many Christians tell me they find difficult is to speak of their belief, they have difficulty sharing their faith… If you have to share your faith with other believers that’s usually quite easy as you know they hold a similar belief, even if on some theological issues you don’t see eye to eye, at least there is a lot of common ground- 

In the beginning God created, we rebelled, Jesus lived, died, and we have been reconciled to God. The good news of Jesus, our faith carries us through the ups and downs of life. Thus, we can share with other believers and our faith that keeps us on mostly common ground.

When it comes to sharing faith with non-believer it is often a different story- 

I had a friend who was learning to fly. He said once up in the air it wasn’t too bad. The hardest part was the take-off and landing. Perhaps this is how it is with sharing our faith- the opening of a conversation particularly possibly the hardest part. Knowing how to explain our faith to people who ask us why we believe can often be tricky,

In the portion of Acts before us today, first Paul is preaching in the synagogue, he’s preaching to the Jews. The Jews already believed in God, based on their Bible- the Old Testament. They know God and know his word and commandments very well. Whether they believe that Jesus was the Messiah or not, they do believe that a Messiah is to be expected, there will be one who would come from God. 

But next Paul finds himself in the market place, there they have many gods, they even have an alter with the inscription ‘to an unknown god’. Maybe they wanted to make sure they didn’t miss on any- I’m not sure. Anyhow, they are ignorant to the one true God.

So, where do we start when we are asked why we believe, what we believe?

Well, part of the answer I suggest lies in how we know and understand God but it also lies in starting where the people we are speaking to are at. Have they been hurt by the church? Have they thought that science is the answer and demolished the bible? What are their circumstance? 

When we are called to witness to non-believers, we need wisdom. We need wisdom as to where to start. I think that’s one of the reasons I enjoy the ministry at the hospital so much, because I get the opportunity to meet with believers, but also with non-believers and have the opportunity to meet them where they are at! That is the starting point to building faith- to growing disciples and to transforming lives for Christ.

Despite our present isolation, I suggest that you still have opportunities to share your faith- with family, with neighbours and friends. 

Therefore, we need to know where to begin, we need wisdom to know what to say or not say, but we also need to know who it is that we testify to. In John’s gospel, Jesus says, ‘You know him, because he abides with you, and he will be in you. ‘I will not leave you orphaned; I am coming to you. In a little while the world will no longer see me, but you will see me; because I live, you also will live.’ …The Spirit of God not only reveals God to us, the Spirit of God lives in us. We know Jesus because we have his Spirit and it is through his Spirit that we can testify to who he is and people will know him.

I love the verse from Acts verse 28, For “In him we live and move and have our being”. 

In him- Jesus- we live- and move- and have our being. 

‘Jesuit priest Anthony de Mello tells the story of the fish that was searching for the mystery he called Ocean. “Where is Ocean?” he asked every other fish he met. Nobody could tell him. “What does Ocean look like?”  Nobody could say; nobody had ever seen it.

Perhaps the fish went on his way, dismissing the idea of Ocean as a figment of the collective imagination.

Or perhaps he realised that Ocean was the fullness of the mystery in which he and all the creatures of the deep live and move and have their being.’ (taken from ‘Simple Faith’ by Margaret Silf 2012) 

The purpose of God's creating and sustaining role is that we may know Him – and enter into a relationship with Him. It is for this purpose that we are created and sustained. Such is the essence of our being and the purpose of our existence.

The declaration of the good news that Jesus is risen from the dead, that he is ascended on high and reigning at the right hand of God, carries with it the encouraging consequence that we may live, that we may know God and that we may enjoy him for eternity.

This is the good news that we can share with others, and share with wisdom and with confidence. This is not about an unknown God; this is about a God who offers us the privilege of an intimate relationship with God himself. 

Let us pray (The Diocesan Prayer) God in whom we live, and move and have our being, we thank you for Jesus Christ who is the Good News. By the power of your Holy Spirit, enable us to be people who transform lives, make disciples, and grow communities, that your glory may be revealed in all creation. We pray this through your Son, Jesus Christ. Amen.