Jesus, like a Good Mom Prepared His "Kids" for His Absence

5 Easter a         May 10, 2020
Acts 17:1-15       Ps. 66: 1-8   
1 Peter 2:1-10     John 14:1-14

Lectionary Link

The Gospel of John include oracles of the Risen Christ placed within a narrative of Jesus.  These oracles address the issues which were facing the early Christian communities.

And in today's Gospel reading, we might understand Jesus as a good real estate agent, or a heavenly HUD authority.  We all like to have a place to live, and we may want to have assurance of a place to live in our afterlives.  Jesus, the ideal Real Estate agent, promises, "Guys, you going to be just fine in your afterlife, because in my Father's house there are many dwelling places and I've prepared one for each of you."  Now many of us with Downton Abbey sensitivities would prefer that the Risen Christ still spoke King James English, because in King James English, Jesus said, "Gentlemen, in my Father's house are many mansions.".....which would you rather live in a mansion or a nondescript "dwelling place?"  So, in changing translations do we get down-sized to the low rent district of the Father housing complex?

What is being addressed in the oracle of the Risen Christ in John's Gospel?

The church is dealing with the real absence of Jesus.  Jesus of Nazareth is gone.  How can we still have faith and believe that he is alive.  And what kind of future will we have?  What kind of future afterlife will we have?  Will we have a location in the the afterlife?  Will we have a place to live in the afterlife?  Will we have a home in the afterlife?

What does the Risen Christ say?  “Don't be troubled.  You can believe in me and my Father that we will take care of you.  I will prepare a place for you.  You will always have a home with me.”  On Mother's Day, we associate Mom with preparing a home; and if Mom did it for us, so too we have the assurance of the Risen Christ about always having a home, a location, a continuing self identity no matter what happens.  Our good doubting Thomas states the obvious regarding empirical proof.  Jesus, we can't see where you're going or where you've arrived.  How can we know the way?  And the  Risen Christ says, "I am, in you, the Way,"  I'm your internal GPS guiding system because, "I am, in you, the Way."  "I am, in you, Truth and honesty about your life, about God and your purpose in life."  "I am, in you, Zoe, or Abundant Life.  I am, in you, Holy Spirit Risen Christ life, which is the experience of eternal life within ordinary biological mortal life.  I am, your brother in showing you that you belong to our heavenly parent as God's child."

Again, another doubter, Philip, who is all of us in our "show me" demands.  "Show us our Father, show us our heavenly parent, so that we can know we are God's child."

And what did the Risen Christ say?  "Seeing me, you have seen our heavenly parent...the very genetics of the divine image is in me completely and it is in you too as you see the divine image staring at you through each other.  Don't doubt the higher familial likeness of the divine image on you for that is how you are made."

What was another main concern of the early Christians?  Well, now that Jesus has left the world how can any work as good as what he did get done?  "Jesus, you did it all and you did it best, so what can we do in any comparable way?  What is our purpose and work now?"

What does the Risen Christ say?  "Friends, your work is even greater.  Why?  My work as Jesus of Nazareth was limited to the time that I lived in Palestine, but time still is accumulating in greatness in everlastingness.  So, to keep filling up the time, there is greater work to do and I will no longer be limited to my physical body in Palestine.  I will be the Risen Christ in you replicating and reproducing endlessly the work of the Gospel of the Good News of God's love.  So, friends, you are a part of the greater work as the Gospel rolls on in time in everlastingness.  Don't limit me to the physical body of Jesus of Nazareth; let me be the Risen Christ inhabiting all who want me to work in and through them.  I am the cornerstone to the body and temple of Christ as I will inhabit you to keep doing the greater work into the endless future."

Today's Gospel in short: Mom prepared a home for us. Christ has prepared an afterlife home for us and having faith in this, we can live with all of our other temporary homes on earth.  Second, trust the presence of Risen Christ as our Way or internal GPS guiding us as we intentionally commit ourselves to his path.  3rd. Let us live in the Truth as Honesty about the Risen Christ in us.  Next, let us accept the assurance of eternal life within mortal life.  And let us accept the familial likeness of the heavenly parent on our lives and find Christ in each other.  The Father is seen as we let the Father see through us.  And finally, let us not think that Jesus during his lifetime exhausted all of the work God wants to do in this world.  Let us accept the absence of the physical Jesus as the assurance of the omni-presence of the spiritual Risen Christ, who St. Paul said poetically, was All and in all.  By accepting the absence of the physical Jesus we can commit ourselves to be a part of doing the greater work that remains as we allow the Risen Christ to continue to work to share the good news of God's reconciling love in our world.  Amen.