I vividly remember one specific clergy meeting during my internship days in Richland Hills, Texas. Area clergy would regularly gather to discuss scripture readings for future Sundays. On the day of this memorable meeting, we were discussing scripture passages for the Sundays of Pentecost and Holy Trinity. Everyone was excited about preaching on Pentecost Sunday, but hardly anyone looked forward to preaching on Trinity Sunday. You see, the doctrine of the Trinity is one clergy would often rather avoid. Anyway, Pastor Phil, my supervisor, joked that the Intern is always given Trinity Sunday as a preaching Sunday. And, later that day, he jestingly told the Calvary Café crew that this is a test to see if the intern is heretical or not!
Talking about the Trinity is not easy! Have you ever really tried to explain the Trinity? We say God is one, and yet we have these three, what? Persons? Spirits? Beings? What is God? Who is God? A triangle, a whole, but with three sides? We say we believe in One God, and then we sing, “God in three persons, blessed Trinity.” How do we make sense of this and what does it mean?
Quite honestly, Jesus did not talk about the Trinity; neither did Paul. We find what appears to be an early form of developing theology on the Trinity in Paul’s writings as well as in the gospel of John, but it was not until the fourth century, 300 years after Jesus, that Christian leaders formalized the theological doctrine of the Trinity. They did it at the Council of Nicaea in 325 CE and the result was The Nicene Creed. Then, in the fifth century, Christian leaders wrote another creed trying once again to clarify the Trinity for folks, particularly the Jesus part. That Council resulted in the Apostles’ Creed.
Over the years, there has been much adversarial, bitter fighting over the concept of the Trinity and throughout history, the church has split because of controversy surrounding this doctrine. Yes, the idea of the Trinity is hard to understand and nearly impossible to explain. So, I am not going to try to explain the Trinity, because it truly is all mystery. However, I am going to attempt to take you deeper into the mystery and the wonder of this One in Three.
I like to dance, and I love to watch people dance. Dance is made up of many different components. Motion, emotion, resonance, rhythm, beat; all of these relate to each other and they come together as one to create a whole when we see people dance. There is something about dance that is like the nature of God.
When we look at the idea of the Holy Trinity, we stand on the edge of mystery, and the model of the Trinity is one of interactive and open relationship. God’s nature can be thought of as a three-way dance, a dance of relationship and incomprehensible love. Through the metaphor of dance, we see three distinct movements of Parent, Son, and Holy Spirit, and these movements exchange life-giving energy. These movements create unity, a perfect unity and oneness. This dance is one of mutual devotion and shared love, a love that is expansive and generous, a love that cannot be self contained. It overflows from Parent to Child to Spirit and back again. The love of God, the love that IS God, is like a divine Dance, a dynamic, graceful, and deeply intimate movement. In this movement, the God who is "I AM" is never alone because the very nature of God is relationship. In the Trinity we see a love that is always selfless, void of ego, and always pointing to the other. In the Trinity we see a oneness where the three are one in mission. When we consider the Trinity, we see a God who is all about relationship, community, and unconditional love – pure, untainted, unreserved love.
In this interactive dance of the divine three in one, we also see a coming together of power and majesty, love and tenderness, oneness and movement, joining with the raw and everyday reality of life, the life of the cosmos and our very lives. In our gospel reading for today, the writer of John’s gospel connects this dance to our lives as we hear that God so loves this world! And, the word John uses for “world” refers to the cosmos – to everything! The dance of love God shares is so overwhelming that God’s love spills out on to everything, encompassing everything – the entire cosmos, the entire creation, this little, miniscule planet that is hardly a speck in the vastness of space, all the people, the land, the animals, the bugs, the world’s goodness and even its evil because God’s love is a transforming, redeeming love for all of creation. You see, God’s love is just that encompassing, immense, audacious, unexpected, and even scandalous.
In this coming together of God’s love for the cosmos, God gives life, enters our very lives, lives among us, and invites us to participate in the dance of agape love. And, what is so mysterious and remarkable is that while God, who in this Dance needs no other, chooses to create and redeem a people. Frankly, this is a love that disturbs us, gnaws at our hearts, creates a hunger for God, unsettles us, grasps us, and draws us into the dance, into the very arms of God’s love, and we become forever changed and transformed. Dear friends, God chose to create and redeem you, me, and every individual we encounter so that we might join in this Dance. The invitations to this dance have been sent, and there are to be no spectators, no outcasts, no outsiders. Friends, we are called by God to see ourselves as God sees each one of us, and thus discover ourselves to be, like the Persons of the Trinity, truly beloved.
Do you remember the words spoken to Jesus when he was baptized? The Father, Son and Spirit danced as the Father spoke saying, “You are my beloved, with you I am well pleased.” Those pulsating, life-giving, creating words danced through creation as a message of divine love. That creative word danced through life, healing the sick, freeing the oppressed, feeding the hungry, breaking the chains of slavery, and transforming chaos into wholeness. When we consider the Trinity, we see a God who has entered the deepest darkness of our lives and walks with us in the places where we think God is most absent. We see a God who is with us at those times of deepest suffering when we ask, “Why?” and there simply are no answers. We see God with us because that God, that three in one, danced to the very hill of Calvary, to the deepest place of darkness. And then, the life-giving, creative dance of love burst forth from a sealed tomb because it could not be contained!
This is the love that invites us to participate in the dance. God speaks to each one of us saying, “You are my beloved, with you I am well pleased. Deb, Bruce, Harold, Virginia, Hugh, Marge, every one of you, children of God, you have been sealed by the Holy Spirit and marked with the cross of Christ forever, come and join the dance!”
Friends, the Divine dance continues in us and through us. And, what does the Trinity dance look like in our lives? We dance with our God when we feed the hungry through our food pantry projects. We dance with our God when we walk with those who are mourning and grieving. We dance with our God when we, ourselves, are grieving. We dance with our God when we take in young refugees and house and care for them in our Parish House. We dance with our God when we participate in the work of our Caring Committee. We dance with our God when we work for justice and peace. We dance with our God when we gather to worship. Created to live in relationship, we move to the beat of divine, incomprehensible love as we dance with God’s very self and with each other. So, come, dance on the edge of mystery, live into the kingdom of God and join the dance of Trinity!
We have the first fruits of the Spirit
The days are getting longer, the sun rises early with birds chirping, singing a sweet melody into a new day
The powerful energy of the sun warms the earth, opening the leaves of the trees and the petals of the flowers, bringing forth abundant new life and growth
When we step outside we feel the strength of the ultraviolet rays on our cheeks and bare arms as warmth spreads across our skin
Warmth that cannot be manufactured by heating systems, sweaters or down blankets
Warmth that is only available from the sun
The sunlight remains in the sky for hours and hours, until well past 9 PM, offering us many opportunities to see, feel and enjoy its beauty.
These long days and warm sun are bringing forth the first fruits of the year.
I look forward to my first fresh strawberry
I imagine going to the strawberry farm with my baskets early in the morning
Bending and crouching my body to kneel in the neat rows,
Smelling the straw laid on the ground
Feeling the early sun warm my back, neck and shoulders
As I peel back the large green leaves of the plant, and pluck my first fresh, bright red strawberry of the season.
The first fruit of the year, the first fresh strawberry lands in my mouth
warmed from the late spring sun and plucked straight from the new growth of the plant
It feels a bit gritty and rough on my tongue at first
My mouth begins to water as I anticipate this sweet, juicy first fruit of the year.
And I take a bite
We have the first fruits of the Spirit
The first, warm, sweet strawberry is resting in our mouth
Waiting for us to bite down and release its juicy goodness
But it sometimes seems like we don't recognize it
Do we know it's there?
We have the first fruits of the Spirit
And yet we're groaning in labor pains
Groaning inwardly and outwardly
Our attention and energy consumed by what we see around us
Waiting
Waiting for adoption, waiting for redemption
Waiting for something
Something to distract us and shift our attention elsewhere
Perhaps waiting for hope
We're told that the Spirit, the Advocate, will help and guide us
The Spirit helps us in our weakness
The Spirit intercedes and advocates for us
The Spirit connects us to God
Like the warmth of the sun, the Spirit cannot be manufactured
The Spirit is the answer we're given today
We have the first fruit of the Spirit
And yet we're groaning in labor pains
We have so much to groan about
Lost work
Racism
Exhaustion
Injustice
Grief
Isolation
Competition
Uncertainty
We have so much to groan about
And yet we have the first fruits of the Spirit
We're holding this warm, fresh, first strawberry on our tongues
Waiting to take a bite
We have generations and generations of ancestors who have bitten into the strawberry and released the juice of the first fruit.
Moses, a man who begged God to send someone else, bit the strawberry when he led the slaves from Egypt
Sarah, who laughed at God's promise, bit the strawberry when she gave birth to Issac
Jacob, who wrestled with God and limped for the rest of his life, bit the strawberry when he was renamed Israel
Mary, young and unwed, bit the strawberry when she said "Here am I, the servant of the LORD"
Martin Luther bit the strawberry when he uncovered God's promise of grace throughout scripture and nailed his 95 theses to the door
Dietrich Bonhoeffer, a self-proclaimed pacifist, bit the strawberry when he plotted against Hitler
Rosa parks bit the strawberry when she refused to give up her seat
Faith Lutheran Church bit the strawberry when they expanded their ministry to include essential workers during this pandemic
We have the first fruits of the Spirit!
We hope for what is not seen
We wait
We continue to groan
meanwhile the Spirit knows us to our core
Meanwhile the Spirit calls our unique gifts out into this world
Meanwhile the Spirit advocates on our behalf
Meanwhile the Spirit gives us courage we didn't realize we had / /
It's hard to recognize the first fruit of the Spirit
The first fruit of the Spirit doesn't mean life will be easy
It doesn't mean things will go our way
Sometimes the first fruit feels gritty and rough
Recognizing the first fruit of the Spirit takes intentionality, and practice
Recognizing the first fruit of the Spirit requires us to pause
To pause and look into the eyes of the person on the street corner, and see their humanity before skipping to the filthy clothes, body odor and dirty hands
The Spirit is in our humanity
To pause and listen intently to a friend who asks for advice, before skipping to your ideas and solutions
The Spirit is in our presence with one another
To pause and wonder when a family member says something you disagree with, before skipping to prove your position
The Spirit is in our curiosity
To pause, and breathe when our anger rises up, before skipping to self justification
The Spirit is in our breath
To pause, and rest in the discomfort of uncertainty, before skipping to controlling and solutions
The Spirit is in the unknown
The Spirit is within each individual person
And the Spirit is collective within communities
Both individual and communal
Unable to be manufactured
Or Contained
We have the first fruits of the Spirit
We are adopted and redeemed by God
We are baptized into the Spirit
We are called by God into this world
To co-create with God
Here, in our time, in our place
Bite the strawberry
Amen
Most of you know one of our sons, his wife, and our grandson, William, live on Grand Cayman Island. We have gone there to visit them several times and it is such a wonderful escape each time we go. On various occasions while there, we have done things like watch the annual Batabano parade as people from the island dress in colorful, outlandish costumes, and dance in procession through the streets for a festive carnival celebrating turtles! We have been there for Pirate Week as people parade through town dressed like pirates. We have taken boat rides out to Stingray City which is an area of ocean surrounding a sand bar where we were able to get out of the boat to pet and feed dozens of stingrays circling around us. We have gone on a submarine excursion to view the gorgeous colors of the coral reef. And, we have had multiple delicious meals as we enjoyed time with our kids. These times have provided a memorable respite from normal, ordinary, everyday life. I so miss being able to see them during this pandemic and I realize how such vacation time provides an often necessary, welcome escape from routine everyday experience. However, not all forms of escape from the real world are beneficial, helpful, or even healthy.
This human desire to seek escape from the real world is as ancient as human history, and this desire is as old as Christian faith. In fact, religious faith may intensify this desire. For people of faith, once we experience and begin to understand what is holy, set apart and good about life together within the context of Christian community, we tend to want to avoid the clamor and conflict of the greater world. We tend to want to escape and often cocoon ourselves within the safe confines of Christian community while staying away from the major issues that face so many around the globe. For centuries, monasteries, convents, and different types of communal living all testify to this desire to live unencumbered by the world while simply focusing on a faithful, set apart life.
This was the kind of desire John’s community was facing as the gospel writer penned the words of the Bible passage we read today. Written at the end of the first century, John’s community was facing increasing persecution and conflict with authorities who opposed the gospel message. Many thought that if they could simply stay together and remain in supportive fellowship with each other they would not have to defend their beliefs. Many felt that by living together in such a community where they would remember Jesus’ stories and sense his presence in fellowship, in the communal meals they called the agape feast, and in bread and wine, they would experience a safer way of life as they faced a growing, hostile world.
In today’s gospel reading, the disciples, John’s faith community, and each one of us get to overhear Jesus’ prayer for all his followers as he is about to face his own death. On the eve of his crucifixion, Jesus speaks words of prayer and promise for all his disciples, including each one of us. As he faces his own death, as he faces what John calls his “hour of glory” or his whole purpose for being here, we hear Jesus praying for all who follow him. And what does Jesus pray for? He prays that his followers may find God’s support, encouragement, strength, and courage to face the challenges that come from living in the world and bearing witness to the gospel of grace and love that comes from him. And he prays that his followers may be one in fellowship with each other and with God.
The world was a hostile place for early Christians and, as we have seen so clearly over the past few years as well as throughout this pandemic, the world can be a very difficult, challenging place for us today. The words we hear from Jesus on this day do not sugarcoat the challenges his followers face. Jesus speaks words of truth about the world in which we live.
This is a world where war seems to be a constant. This pandemic has taken so many lives. Climate change is looming large on the horizon and is already bringing enormous change to our world. Conspiracy theories abound and far too many people want to believe falsehoods, not acknowledge known truths, and trust their own uninformed opinions instead of trusting in science and proven scientific fact. Terrorism is an increasing threat right here in our own country. Poverty is very real and present in our own community, throughout this country, and around the globe. Thirteen million children are food insecure right here in America, one of the richest countries in the world. Hunger is a monumental challenge around the world. We have seen through our pantry projects how hunger is a challenge right here in our own Okemos community. Over the past few years, our culture has become increasingly dysfunctional as we have experienced extreme polarization in thinking and beliefs. Racism is present in almost every system and structure. The rage and anger people feel is palpable. Yes, the world is a difficult place and Jesus does not deny that. In today’s reading, we hear him speak words of truth about what the disciples will face. And, as we move out of this pandemic, begin to again gather, and move into a different kind of normal, we who call ourselves Christian also need to speak words of truth about what we face in 2021.
Jesus’ words provide his followers with no escape from life’s difficulties. His words to the Father are, “I am not asking you to take them out of the world, but I ask you to protect them from the evil one.” He asks for God’s protection and support against all the evils of the world for all his followers. Jesus does not promise us exemption from the struggles of life, but he does promise and assure us that we are not alone in the struggle. And, instead of retreating from the world, Christ offers us an alternative model that can empower us to live in the world without succumbing to its values and pressures. We are to live amid all the knotted complexities without getting ourselves entangled. Friends, we are enabled to live this way as we immerse ourselves in God’s word, in God’s action through the living Word, and as we are fed with the nourishment of Jesus’ very life through weekly Word and Sacrament. When we do this, we live into the gift of unity that is God-given! And, as we live this way, God reorients our yearnings for escape from the world as the truth of God’s word is revealed in and through the very real stuff of the world, the needs of the world.
As Jesus’ prayer continues, we then hear a great crescendo as he says, “As you have sent me into the world, so I have sent them into the world.” This is a very powerful phrase because the words “sent into the world” are the exact opposite of escaping from or “getting out” of the world. This verse in today’s gospel is patterned on Jesus’ own life and calls the church to follow his example by becoming engaged with the world in all its distorted powers and pressures.
Yes, we do live in a difficult and often painful world. And, we can at times become exhausted, even feel despair as we view and experience people’s pain and watch ceaseless violence and corruption both here and around the world. This feeling can cause us to want to stay cocooned within our own homes and our own safe community, not addressing the needs of the world. However, Jesus’ words today tell us we have been sent to bear witness to the truth that God loves this whole world, broken as it is. We have been promised Christ’s presence with us and to us as we vitally and faithfully become fully engaged with the needs and wounds of this world, and as we bear Christ’s creative, redeeming Word and God’s healing love to this world. As we begin to again gather in person and come together as a community of Faith, we come to be made one, to receive God’s gift of unity, and to be energized and fed by the truth of God’s redeeming Word. And, we are called not to escape but to do the necessary work so that all people might have a more abundant life, a life that truly matters, right here and right now.
As we move into a time when more people are getting vaccinated and we can again begin to gather in-person, one of the things I am truly looking forward to is baptizing the children who have been born in our midst during this pandemic. Walter and Brenda Kopf’s grandson, Garrett, will be baptized in two weeks, and Mark and Molly DeHate’s son, Luca, will soon be baptized. As many of you know, I find baptisms to be one of the most meaningful things I do as I live into this call to ministry because in baptism we are shown how deeply and unconditionally we are loved by God, something that is communicated in all our scripture readings on this day.
In today’s reading from Acts, Peter is astonished to discover the Holy Spirit falls even on those who are Gentiles, those considered “other.” He then understands Gentiles cannot be denied the cleansing waters of baptism, new life, and God’s unconditional love. And, in our second reading, the writer of 1 John tells us the unconditional love that comes from our Creator Parent, expressed through the person of Jesus and through the Spirit, is born in us as we obey God’s commandment to love. Then, in today’s reading from John’s gospel, we find a continuation of the words we heard Jesus speaking last Sunday, and he again speaks about abiding in the love that is splashed all over us, love that will make our joy complete.
This whole section of John’s gospel is known as Jesus’ Farewell Discourse because he is preparing the disciples for his death. He knows he is going to die, and he knows he will be leaving them. In John’s gospel, these words are some of the last words Jesus speaks during his earthly life, and his last words are all about love. Jesus speaks of his love for the disciples as he calls them friends. And, by extension, he speaks these words to each one of us saying, “As the Father has loved me, so I love you, and so you should love one another.”
In our culture, the word “love” is highly ambiguous. However, in Greek, there are many different words for different types of love. The big challenge for us is that these multiple words become translated into English as just one word, simply the word love. In today’s passage, the word that has been translated as love comes from the Greek word agape. Agape love describes the excellence of character that is God’s very nature. It is all about relationship and it is the kind of love we find characterizing the relationship of the three persons of the Trinity. It is the kind of love in which we participate through sheer grace. Agape describes the Father’s love for the Son and it describes God’s love for us. Agape is all gift – a gift from God. Agape is not a feeling or inclination. It is the kind of love that responds as obedience to God’s commandment to choose to love others as God has chosen to love us. Agape love is always primarily interested in the good of the other person, rather than one’s own self. It is never a love that attempts to possess or dominate others. The concern is always for others and agape is never domineering, manipulative, possessive, or subordinating. Agape love always allows authentic, genuine space for others to be and become and grow. And, it is always offered without reserve.
We live in a culture that is extremely individualistic, self-focused and self-serving, a culture in which love takes on possessive characteristics. In fact, there is frequently a tendency to view love as a commodity, even something that becomes a scarcity as some people begin to think others are receiving more love than they are. This is never what love is about.
We as a people have become very selfish, and far too often self-interest is placed at the top of any list of priorities. In fact, we have become a nation that has increasingly exemplified the characteristics of narcissism, as in America first, something that I pray is beginning to turn around. We tend to be people who talk about love as this warm, euphoric feeling inside, a feeling one has when one is with some special person. We talk about “making love.” We throw the word love around and use it in cheap ways as we talk about loving objects like our house or our car, or something we want to get or possess. Quite honestly, what we claim to love is often borne out of a consumer driven culture. But, when it comes to people and relationships with others, we can be rather stingy and self-serving about our love.
So, today it is fitting that Jesus’ words break into our lives with a message of love, the love God has for this world and for all people. The love God calls us to live into every day is a very different kind of love. The nature of this love is giving. In fact, one might even say giving until it hurts. That is the love Jesus was talking about and that is the love he lived. Jesus not only gave until it hurt, he gave himself over unto death on a cross, all for the sake of love.
When we live into this kind of love, it is a choice. We choose to love, and it becomes a way of life through which we become changed. To love in this manner means obeying Jesus’ command to love. Agape love is a disciplined habit of care and concern, one that we work on perfecting over a lifetime as the living Word changes us, continually challenges us, takes us to new places, and continually makes us new. The love God shows toward Jesus is a demanding love, but it is also full of presence, promise and immeasurable joy. It is a love that prunes, cleanses, challenges, molds, and forms us. It is that kind of love that carried Jesus throughout his ministry. And, guess what, my friends, it is that kind of love that carries us and holds us, and it is that kind of love we are called to live.
The love of God that we are invited into is a love without limits. It is a wasteful love. It is love that is selfless and thus produces and enhances life. In fact, this love we see in the person of Jesus Christ is a love that invites us into a whole new dimension of what it means to be human, a love through which we become more fully human and whole. When we live this kind of love, all those boundaries that establish status and power are reversed. When we live this kind of love, the boundaries that have been created to separate us from those considered “others” are obliterated. This love is a servant love that truly cares for all others.
Friends, God is defined as love. The love of God, the love we are called to live, is not an entity so much as it is an all-pervading, penetrating experience. It is experienced when we discover that God’s love embraces us as we are, and God’s love embraces all people as they are. We discover that we cannot create this kind of love, we can only receive it and then share it. This is the love that binds us to God and one another. And, this love is the very meaning of Jesus.
There is a story about Karl Barth, one of the great theologians of the twentieth century. Toward the end of his life, Barth made a tour of the United States, where he had the opportunity to speak at several of our nation’s top universities. During a question/answer time following one of his lectures, a student posed what seemed to be an impossible question to answer. The student asked, “Dr. Barth, you have written extensively on every aspect of theology and church history. I’m wondering if you could sum it all up in a short sentence or two.” The room fell silent. Dr. Barth just stood there for a moment, carefully considering how to respond. Some of the professors and students who were there clearly began to feel awkward that such a minor question would be asked of such a brilliant scholar. Finally, Karl Barth turned toward the student and succinctly replied, “Jesus loves me, this I know, for the Bible tells me so.”
Today, Jesus’ last words to the disciples and each one of us are, “I’ve loved you the way my Father has loved me. Make yourselves at home in my love. If you keep my commands, you’ll remain intimately at home in my love. That’s what I’ve done – kept my Father’s commands and made myself at home in his love. I’ve told you these things for a purpose: that my joy might be your joy, and your joy wholly mature. This is my command: Love one another the way I loved you. This is the best way to love. Put your life on the line for your friends.”
Americans are known for having a fierce sense of independence, freedom, and self-identity, and we have taken pride in promoting freedom for people, not only here but also around the world. However, as we have seen throughout this Covid-19 pandemic, there is in this country a growing interpretation of individual freedom that has morphed into something that is unhealthy, toxic, and malignant as we now see people who feel their individual freedom is more important than their responsibility to and for the care of neighbor. This growing vein of thought has become a cancer in our culture, and it is also something that runs completely contrary to Jesus’ teaching. If you claim to be a Christian, and if you claim to follow the way of Jesus, such thinking is the antithesis of the way you are called to live. Today, our scripture readings teach us just how contrary such thinking is to what Jesus actually teaches.
I love what Nadia Bolz-Weber says as she reflects upon people’s sense and perception of individual independence, and the challenge we find in today’s gospel reading. She writes:
I’m nothing if not independent. Reportedly my first sentence was “Do it self!” Yes, I will do it myself, thank you. See I want choices. And I want independence….What I wish Jesus said is: “I am whatever you want me to be. And you can be whatever you want to be: vine, pruner, branch, soil….knock yourself out.” What Jesus actually said is: “I am the vine. My Father is the vine grower. You are the branches.” Dang. The casting has already been finalized. Vines, and branches off of vines, are all tangled and messy and it’s just too hard to know what is what…Not only are we dependent on Jesus, but our lives are uncomfortably tangled up together. The Christian life is a vine-y, branch-y, jumbled mess of us and Jesus and others. Christianity is a lousy religion for the “do it self!” set.
Yes, Christianity is a lousy religion for the “do it self” set. And, nowhere does Jesus teach more clearly that we are not independent do-it-yourselfers than here in today’s gospel reading. You see, nowhere does Jesus demonstrate more clearly that we cannot go it alone, that we cannot pull ourselves up by our bootstraps when life puts us down, and that it is completely unreasonable to expect anyone else to either. Today’s gospel reading is all about being connected to the vine, remaining connected and staying connected throughout this life journey we all are traveling together. It is not about individual, personal independence. It is not about doing it alone, thinking “me do it myself,” or I can do anything I darn well please.
As we enter today’s gospel, we find ourselves back on that evening of Maundy Thursday in John’s account of the Jesus story. Jesus knows he is about to die and leave the disciples behind. So, he urges them to remain in him, stay connected to him, and remain in fellowship with each other. Jesus is clearly saying to the disciples and to each one of us, “Stay connected. Live in relationship to me. And, stay connected and live in relationship to each other. Make your home in me just as I do in you. Continue on in my teaching and example and remain in fellowship with each other.” And, he gives us this wonderful image of the vine and branches.
Now, if we think about wild grapevines, or any vine for that matter, one thing we soon realize is that vines and branches are tangled and messy. They are invasive, they can take over trees and even pull branches of trees down. They can become a very tangled, destructive mess when in the wild and untended. Yet, when we look at a cultivated grapevine, we can see that the vine grower has put an anchor to the main vine. The branches are sorted out, trained and even disciplined. There is a wire structure that supports the vine from below and from above. All the dead branches have been removed. And, the vines and branches that are cultivated end up producing large quantities of grapes.
With this image Jesus shares, he shows us that Christ is the source of all life. Our very existence is dependent on God, who nurtures and cultivates us. We are not and cannot be the vine that gives life to all. Neither are we the vine grower, the one who cultivates, stakes, supports and yes, prunes the branches, though sometimes we try to claim this authority. We are the branches and, if we are to flourish, we need to stay connected to the vine, abide, and remain dependent on the vine.
To abide is all about remaining, staying, taking up residence, and making one’s own self at home. It is about living in the community of Christ, participating in the life of that community, and staying connected to that community. When we abide in Christ, God’s love is perfected in our lives. When we abide in Christ, love grows in us, casting out fear and hatred, and empowering us to act boldly.
Abiding in Christ means admitting that we are not independent, do-it-yourselfers who can boast saying, “Me do it myself,” or “I did it my way,” or “Having freedom means I can do whatever I want, regardless of how it affects my neighbor.” Abiding in Christ means accepting that we are dependent on Christ and on each other. It means graciously receiving the support Christ offers us, most often through the caring of our brothers and sisters. It also means consenting to be pruned. It means letting go of the things that hinder our growth in love, things like fear, hatred, greed, jealousy, grudges, resentment, shame, guilt, and all the other invasive, vine-like, tangled things that mess us all up. And, abiding in Christ is always about belonging, belonging to the One who gives us life, life that truly matters. You see, this abiding in Christ is all about relationship.
The relational connectedness Jesus is speaking of is a connectedness that is only found through experiencing life together within the context of a faith community. And, yes, living in this kind of relationship, abiding in Christ, and staying connected to Christ the true vine, means it is not always going to be comfortable or easy. It can be difficult. Living in relationship with others requires give and take. Such living requires us to be vulnerable. Living in relationship with others means there will be ups and downs as we travel this journey together. You see, living life together in community means we have to put up with real people, some who are nice and some who are not, some who want things their way and others who don’t want to challenge the status quo. Quite frankly, life together means having to put up with people who are sometimes jerks. And, we must be very honest about something – it also means recognizing and having to admit that sometimes we are the ones who are being the jerks. The truth is, real, authentic community is something we often would rather shy away from because it can be uncomfortable, and it goes against our malignant perception of independence and individual freedom. And, because we do not like to be uncomfortable, we are sometimes like a little child who says, “Me do it myself, I don’t need anyone else.”
However, today Jesus invites us to be real, to be deeply connected, to be planted in the very life of God and live in intimate relationship with him and with each other. Jesus invites us to be honest about who we are and what we are. Jesus invites us to come together and confess our hopes and fears, to share our dreams and disappointments, to be honest about our accomplishments and our failures, to be open about our blessings and our sin, and to be dependent on Him. In Jesus, we are invited into deep, authentic relationship with one another so that we can discover we are accepted, loved, and forgiven by God who loves this whole world enough to send God’s own Son.
It is by being connected, being planted in God, and participating in Christian community, that we learn what real love is all about. When we stay connected to the vine and live together in authentic Christian community, the love that happens and is born enables us to then love all others – not just some, and to love our neighbor as we ourselves have been loved. It is that kind of love that brings others in and grafts them to the vine. And, it is that kind of love that sends us out to make a difference in people’s lives both here and around the world as love and life that truly matters become the fruit of living in relationship to God and all others.