Sunday, June 7, 2015

At Home with Jesus' Family

Softly and tenderly Jesus is calling, calling, O sinners, come home.

Come home.  Today we hear about Jesus coming home.  We never really hear about him at home – he wasn’t even born at home.  He’s usually on the road with the disciples, doing the teaching, healing, miracles thing.  But this morning, he’s home; and of course bringing all the people with him.

Now wouldn’t you maybe think that his parents and siblings would be happy to see him?  He’s JESUS!  Hindsight is 20/20 isn’t it though, because to us he’s JESUS – but to them – he’s just Jesus.  Jesus who’s hanging out with the wrong crowd.  Jesus who’s bringing all those people with him everywhere.  Jesus who acts in ways that that make people uncomfortable and embarrass his family.

Do you think that maybe when he wasn’t at home – which we can assume was pretty often – his mother and brothers and sisters would talk about him – like when is Jesus gonna get his act together?  When is he going to get a real job and start thinking about starting a family?  When is he going to settle down – and start ACTING like a member of this family?

They must have been saying something to that effect when Jesus was out doing his thing – because no one from his family rushes to greet him with open arms when he stops in for a bite to eat.  Instead they are embarrassed?  They are frustrated?  Angry?  What tone do you think his family hits when they see Jesus and his disciples and these crowds of followers and exclaim – someone get out there and do something.  He has gone out of his mind!

Oh family.  I’m not all that surprised we don’t hear a lot of stories with Jesus home with his family.

Jesus says a couple of things about family, but they’re not all that good.  At the end of this passage he says – who are my family?  Who are my brothers and sisters?  Those who do the will of God – that’s who my family is!  Implied is that his blood relations don’t necessarily fall into that category, right?

On the cross in John’s gospel as the beloved disciple and his mother stand there he says – woman, behold your son. And looking at the disciples says – behold your mother.  We can assume they are not related – by blood – but through Jesus they are now family.

And chapter 10 in Matthew he says – Peace?  You think I came to bring peace?  I came to bring a sword.  For I have come to set man against father, and daughter against mother – and ones enemies will be members of one’s own family!

Doesn’t sound to me like Jesus has a lot of great things to say about family – does it?  Why do you think that is?

Ye who are weary come home, come home – that hymn goes.  Family can sometimes make us very weary.  It’s something that hasn’t changed all that much since Jesus’ time in many ways – an idea that’s cross-cultural I’d say.  I’m talking this notion, this tradition we have that family is everything.

Jesus’ family thinks he is crazy because Jesus doesn’t buy that, doesn’t live like that, in terms of our surname family, is everything.  Jesus believes – and wants us to believe, accept and live out – the good news that God’s family is bigger than Weeks, or Smith or Thomas.  That the waters of baptism are stronger than the ties, the blood, of family.

Ye who are weary come home. You know the first time I heard that hymn was at a Baptist church in Durham, NC.  When I was associate rector there I was involved with our J2A group going on a pilgrimage to Greece.  Just like our teens are about to go on their J2A pilgrimage to the Grand Tetons in a couple of weeks.

You know sometimes folks in churches think pilgrimages are over the top – like how is a pilgrimage relevant to a teenager learning about the Christian faith.  Well, in my experience – and I’ll bet if you ask the leaders of our J2A and teens that have been involved – a theme that would emerge – would be family.  Not the family your born into but the family that gets created in community – that is not of your choosing, but God’s.

Anyway on this pilgrimage to Greece on of our teens, Ed – his mother was very ill – she was dying.  His parents didn’t come to church.  Ed had come once from a sleepover and yes, the activities of the youth group and the pilgrimage were the primary reason he came to church.  His parents were divorced.  I talked with the dad – his mom was Baptist.  Ed’s mom was so ill at this point we waited until the last possible minute to even see if Ed would go – but in the end, he decided he would.

Day three of the pilgrimage – we’re in Thessaloniki – as in Paul’s letter to the Thessalonians – and his dad calls my cell phone.  His mother is dying – really dying.  As always when it comes to these situations you can’t set a time and day.  His father is beside himself on the phone with me – he doesn’t know what to do.  He feels horrible about making Ed leave.  He feels guilty about the costs of getting Ed home early (the church would be covering much of that).  And he doesn’t know if this is really it – really the end.  She’s been sick for so long what if it’s just another incident?

This man wasn’t a member of my family.  I didn’t even really have a relationship with him through church. He was sobbing – sobbing with me on the phone asking over and over again – what should I do?

What your heart tells you to do.  There is no right answer.  There is your gut.  There is your heart.

At 3am that morning I sat in the lobby with Ed waiting for a cab to drive him to the airport so he could catch his flight back home.

Before the kids went to bed that night we all sat around and talked – and everything shifted.  Everyone was family – when families are at their best.  Listening, supporting, crying, laughing.

During the pilgrimage the kids got Ed souvenirs and sent him postcards. They wanted Ed to be as much a part of their pilgrimage experience as possible. And a few weeks after we got home, his mother died.  His family was small and was hurting and didn't fill that big Baptist church. I can't tell you how powerful it was when all 16 kids, their parents and their leaders and me – were at that funeral - singing that hymn. There was a church family there for Ed, which believe me, he needed – a family of peers, of friends – whom God had brought together.

We were a sign of love and support.  We were living into Jesus’ definition of family – whoever does the will of God is my family, he said.  And we are brought into this family through what?  Through baptism – that’s how we mark it anyway – often on behalf of children before they even know it.

Yesterday morning, we had a baptism here.  I want you all to know about a new member of this family – Sophia Hendrickson, granddaughter to John and Elizabeth Hendrickson. Now as you know, typically we do baptisms together as a church family as a part of Sunday Eucharist.  Because those two sacraments – Baptism and Eucharist are the core of our identity as a family and meant to be in community.  But occasionally – and for pastoral reasons – we will do baptism outside of Sunday.  And I will say – it was wonderful because it wasn’t a small gathering but y’all brought a contingent, many of who had connections already to Good Shepherd.  And best of all – lots of kids who could participate and allow me the opportunity to explain the why of what we’re doing.  I’m explaining it to the kids – but truth be told it’s the adults who need to understand that a baptism isn’t special mojo being bestowed – it’s symbolic of the grace of God that has already entered their life – and they have a responsibility as parents and godparents to remember that grace for their child and for themselves.

There’s this thing with baptism I’ve been thinking about doing for well over a year – but I’m scared.  It’s one of those things were you all might think to yourself – uh oh, Arianne’s gone out of her mind.  Its called open baptism – so before the baptism when I say, the candidates will now be presented – I also say – if there is anyone here who feels the love of Jesus Christ and is moved to make a commitment to proclaim the good news of God please come forward.  Is there anyone here who desires to be baptized?

So I’m scared I’ll look foolish, because would anyone come forward.  But what’s even more terrifying – what if someone does come forward?

Bishop Doyle of Texas tells a story – because he practices open baptism – so whenever he does a visitation – he includes this invitation – our version of an altar call.  He says the majority of the time – the response is the sound of crickets.  But one time he was at a church, he invited, there was silence and then a man stood up in the back and said – I want to, but I’m a sinner.  And the bishop immediately replied – that’s ok, because I am too!  And as that man walked forward – 20 people, 20 adults followed in behind – and all were welcomed into the family – all felt the waters of forgiveness that day.

Look.  I’m not saying the Christian family is better than any other.  In fact, we struggle with all the same problems as any other family – spend enough time in church – read the news of our diocese this past year – and you know our family is like any other.  But, Jesus is the reason we have been brought together.  When you and I are a part of families that we’ve chosen – or that we’ve been brought into – where we practice the healthy, life-giving ways of God – the ways of acceptance, the ways of loving detachment, the ways of right speech, the ways of pulling out the logs in our own eyes before we try to pluck the speck from our neighbors – the ways of humility, mercy, and steadfastness – when we practice the attributes that God brings before us in Christ – we get better at bringing those practices into our families.

I know there are people sitting here who are struggling in their families.  I know there are people sitting here who have been carrying the hurts inflicted on them – or the hurts they have inflicted on members of their family for a long time.  This morning we hear Jesus say – come home – calling O sinner – come home.  There is a wonderful image Jesus uses for family – in the gospel of Luke – as he looks out over all Jerusalem and cries – and through his tears says – O Jerusalem – you crazy family who hurt the ones who bring God’s ways into your midst – how I long to gather you like a mother hen gathers her brood underneath her wings.

Renew yourself day by day, come home.  Let Jesus gather you into God's family and practice the ways of Jesus for yourself, and for your family.  Amen.

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