1 John 3:1-3
1 See what love the Father has given us, that we should be called children of God; and that is what we are. The reason the world does not know us is that it did not know him. 2 Beloved, we are God's children now; what we will be has not yet been revealed. What we do know is this: when he is revealed, we will be like him, for we will see him as he is. 3 And all who have this hope in him purify themselves, just as he is pure.
Matthew 5:1-12
1
When Jesus saw the crowds, he went up the mountain; and after he sat
down, his disciples came to him. 2 Then he began to speak, and taught
them, saying:
3
"Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of
heaven.
4
"Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted.
5
"Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the earth.
6
"Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for
they will be filled.
7
"Blessed are the merciful, for they will receive mercy.
8
"Blessed are the pure in heart, for they will see God.
9
"Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called children
of God.
10 "Blessed are those who are persecuted for
righteousness' sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
11
"Blessed are you when people revile you and persecute you and
utter all kinds of evil against you falsely on my account.
12
Rejoice and be glad, for your reward is great in heaven, for in the
same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you.
- I have to tell you; I like this passage from the first letter of John. The letters of John have an agenda, just like Paul's letters. They weren't written to say hello and report how the fishing was. All of those letters were written to answer questions or to confront problems. Paul had founded a number of churches around the Mediterranean Sea and felt responsible for them and their faith.
- John was different; he was troubled by the direction his own distinctive Christian community was going. Many of that community (and some commentators believe most of the community) were slipping into a heresy known as “Gnosticism”, which taught that salvation came from secret knowledge. The writer we call John was trying to call them back to faith in Jesus Christ.
- When John told his readers that they should realize that they are God's children, he was reminding them of what they had been taught – that God's grace and life were with them now and were given freely without requiring some sort of special knowledge. The love and grace of God were mystery enough for all. No one knows the actual outcome of the dispute, but it appears that it did not end happily for the more orthodox group.
- Still, for us today, there is a message of hope on this All Saints Sunday, even as we remember our beloved dead. It is as simple as this: Beloved, we are God's children now; what we will be has not yet been revealed.
- In the present day, we stand as a people received into God's own life as adopted children. Not as children of an after-thought or as lesser, second-class siblings, but as beloved children. God has already bestowed upon us the thing that is most important for being the people we are called to be. We are children of God. Already. Today. Now. Nothing changes this, not even death. What more can be said of this? We need only to look to the Resurrection of Jesus Christ! Death could not hold him and he is ...the firstborn among many brothers and sisters. (Romans 8:29) His disciples are not kept from the Father by death, even though they are gone from our sight.
- There is a second part to the passage from John: what we will be has not yet been revealed. Could this be John's way of saying something like “the best is yet to come.” or as the Pennsylvania Germans say “Save your fork; there's cake yet.” Or is it more like the old vaudeville saying “You ain't seen nothin' yet!”
- That is our hope at least. John tells us that what is to come is beyond our understanding and our comprehension. We cannot come to any concept of it by our own thought or imagination. What we will be will come to us as a revelation.
- There have been many guesses as what is to come, and they all fall short. Whether it is reincarnation, transformation into an angel or some sort of angelic being, or a re-purposing of our lives until we get it right, any of these ideas will not encompass what God has waiting for us. Paul put it this way in his first letter to the church at Corinth: But, as it is written, ‘What no eye has seen, nor ear heard, nor the human heart conceived, what God has prepared for those who love him’
- John does however give us a hint: What we do know is this: when he is revealed, we will be like him, for we will see him as he is. When our Saviour is completely revealed, that revelation will change us to become fully like him. What we look forward to is nothing less than a “resurrected” life.
- Now there is something more to this than waiting to become like Jesus. That grace-filled life begins now. We need only to look at the Beatitudes to see what a Christ-like life would be. Each of the Beatitudes from Jesus' Sermon on the Mount declares a group of people to be “Blessed” even though they might not be seen as such by society in general. The Beatitudes take what appears to be loss and makes it gain; what appears to be a curse becomes a blessing. After all, poverty, mourning, and persecution are not seen as good things.
- So why are these people blessed? Because they are like Christ and bear a portion of his life. After all, who was more poor in spirit than Jesus? Who was more gentle or humble? (We'll use those terms instead of saying “meek.”) Who better exemplified mercy and the hunger for righteousness? You can take any of the Beatitudes and apply them to Jesus. You can apply them to his disciples by extension and as his disciples emulate him.
- Lastly in the sermon, Jesus says this: Blessed are you when people revile you and persecute you and utter all kinds of evil against you falsely on my account. Rejoice and be glad, for your reward is great in heaven, for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you. We all know that Christ continues to be reviled and persecuted in his disciples.
- To put it simply, we wait for the resurrection of the dead, as we say whenever we recite the Creed. To remember those who have passed on brings to mind the resurrection they await as well. There is no guess-work here, although there is a mystery. This is our ultimate hope and our faith draws us closer to the Resurrected One and with him, to those who wait for their own resurrection as we do.
What
we do know is this: when he is revealed, we will be like him, for we
will see him as he is.
(At the close of the Prayers of the Church, I added this litany of rembrance that I borrowed from an old high school friend's Facebook posting.)
At the rising of the sun and at it’s going down - We
remember you
At the blowing of the wind and the chill of winter - We
remember you
At the opening of the buds and in the rebirth of
spring - We
remember you
At the blueness of the sky and in the warmth of
summer - We
remember you
At the rustling of the leaves and in the beauty of
autumn - We
remember you
At the beginning of the year and when it ends - We
remember you
As long as we live, you too will live; for you are
now a part of us - We
remember you
When we are weary and in need of strength - We
remember you
When we are lost and sick at heart - We
remember you
When we have a joy we crave to share - We
remember you
When we have decisions that are difficult to make - We
remember you
When we have achievements that are based on you - We
remember you
As long as we live, you live too; for you are now a
part of us in God - We remember you
Remembered this day:
Maria Budaker
Marjorie Dutot
John Golem
Mary Frances McGeehin
Walter Moritz
Emil Neukamm
Reini Simones
Yvette Simones
Joyce Slorach
Mary Triebl
Remembered this day:
Maria Budaker
Marjorie Dutot
John Golem
Mary Frances McGeehin
Walter Moritz
Emil Neukamm
Reini Simones
Yvette Simones
Joyce Slorach
Mary Triebl
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