"Get A Life": John 1:1-14
- Rev. Antonio L. Torrence, Pastor of Cross of Life Lutheran Church
The philosopher, Henry David Thoreau, once said that most of us 'lead lives of quiet desperation." It would seem that Thoreau is right. Many of us are in the land of the living but our lives are not testimonies that we are living large.
A glance at our society would show us that things are not going well. The legal sector would show growing divorce rates. Media would depict increased child abuse and drug abuse. We would see an explosion of teen -age pregnancies, gangs prowling on our streets, and police patrolling our high schools. Our prisons are testimonies to increased crime, systemic violence, and judicial discrimination. Even the air we breathe is certified as polluted while our food contains many cancer-causing agents. And don't forget the nightmare of AIDS, Cancer, MS and TB. Things in our natural life seem to be going bad. We are living lives of quiet desperation -- Secret lives, doubles lives, sheltered lives, and lives of hard knocks. We are in the land of the living but we are not living large.
Many of us are living an imitation of life. We are trying to imitate the lives of everybody else. We are trying to be people we are not. Our financial debt is proof that we are trying to obtain an image created by society. We buy the latest fashion and lease the most impressive car. We put on an image of success carrying a mobile phone and Gucci bag; dressed in Versace, Tommy, and Anne Klein II. And if the truth were told, we are living far beyond our means. We are the working poor - just one paycheck from being homeless. We are fakes and phonies. Our hair is fake. Our nails are fake. Our eye color is fake. We are trying to escape being our real selves. We are constantly on a diet - afraid to eat in public because folks my see that our best friends are a knife and a folk. We get our tummies tucked, faces lifted, noses fixed, and thighs lypo-suctioned, trying to be like Naomi Campbell when we are really Mom’s Maebellie. We are trying to live up to a man-made image --an imitation of someone else’s idea of life. We are in the land of the living but we are not living large.
Many of us are too busy to live and enjoy life. We are so caught up in our struggle to make a living that we don’t have the time to really breathe. We don’t have time to spend with our families and to socialize with our friends. Life for us is filled with schedules, obligations, and responsibilities. We are bound by an alarm clocks, time clocks, and biological clocks. From sun up to sun down we are working on proposals, presentations, and budgets. We are busy networking, making ends meet, and pulling strings. We live through hectic and confusing days. Our cars break down, our relationships break up, our children mess up, and we are just trying to keep up. We are stressed out, burned out, broke down, filled with the blues, living in the dumps, depressed, frustrated, anxious, and restless. We are like walking zombies addicted to nicotine and caffeine; our lives are busy with hustle and bustle but we are not living large.
Then, some of us are afraid to live. We are afraid to branch out and experience life. We play it safe and never risk going out on a limb. We treat life, like we do television, being contented as couch potatoes and watching life go by. We spend our days seeing others achieve their dreams and accomplish their goals. Our language is filled with ‘could ofs’. I’ve could of gotten that promotion if I wanted to. I could of’ started my own business if I wanted to. I could of finished college if I wanted to. Our lives are filled with language of what we ‘could of’ done. Now we spent our time wondering about opportunities not taken; doors never opened; and paths we were too afraid to travel. We are in the land of the living but we are not living large.
We need to get a life. We are in need of a change in our routines. Like the people mentioned in John's Gospel, we are in need of a new living. We are like brother Nicodemus, going to church, Sunday after Sunday, serving on boards and committees, knowing all about the doctrine and dogma. And maintaining a moral and upright life. But we are not experiencing new life. We have been in the church for years; and yet, we are still spiritually dead. We need a new life. We need to be born again. We are like the Samaritan woman, going from one relationship to another, searching for someone to make our lives complete; yet, we end up with the local town dog. Our emotions have been played with and we have been lied to. We thirst for love. We thirst for acceptance. We go through life carrying a bucket of dried up dreams and false hopes. Our self-esteem is low, and we are willing to settle for anything and anyone that comes our way. We need a new life. We are like the adulterous women, caught sleeping around. We are afraid to make a commitment. Our only concern is our black book and satisfying our own passions. We need new life. We are like the Pharisees who came to John the Baptist, asking, "Who he was?” “Why was he preaching? Why was he breaking tradition?” We are the National Inquirer, trying to find out every body’s business. We are bound up by rituals, tradition, and old paradigms. We are afraid to be different, afraid to do something new. We need a new life. Some of us are like Mary and Martha mourning over the death of a love one. We are overcome with grief. We don't know how we can go on. We just want to roll up and die. We need new life.
We need a life modeled after the life of Jesus. We need that life promised by the gospel of Christ. - A real life. -An abundant life. We need what was in Jesus. "In him was life." The Greek philosophers called it 'Zoë.' Jesus had Zoë. You see Zoë is not just eternal life, something that lasts forever. It is not just a life that begins in heaven. It is a certain quality of life that begins right now. With Zoë we don’t have to wait to get to heaven in order to shout. We can shout right now. Zoë is much more than just physical living. It is not a thing but it is vitality. It has an existence of its own. It's not mechanical but 'self moving'. It is much more than just natural living because with natural life anyone can live. A comatose person still can be considered living. A dead church still can be considered living. But Zoë is more than just living. It stirs and moves. It exists beyond existence. Zoë never gets old and it never gets tired. Zoë-true life, belongs to God and Jesus had Zoë.
Jesus had life. To look upon Jesus was to see life itself. It was to see the heavens and universe encircling the Creator's brow. It was to see the mountains and rolling hilltops standing firm upon God's shoulders. It was to see the birds of the air and the beasts of the field impressed upon his breast. It was to see the lilies in the valleys and the roses of Sharon cascading down his back. It was to see the depths of the ocean and the rolling waves of the seven seas rising at his waist. To see Jesus was to see the cosmos wrapped up in flesh dwelling among humanity. To see Jesus was to see life and his life was the light of men.
Jesus gave life to those around him. The African theologian, Athanasius believed that Christ became like us, so that we could become like Christ. God became one hundred percent man, so that we would not settled for being called 2/3 of a man. God descended downward so that we could ascend upward. He lowered himself so we could be lifted up. Jesus took on natural life so that we could gain spiritual life. Jesus was life and he gave life to those around him. And, no one who followed Jesus led a mundane life. No one ever experienced a dull and boring moment. The liberationist, Paulo Freire, would call Jesus a dialogical man because he used his life to transform the lives of others. He used his life to bring life to those around him. At the wedding of Cana when the people ran out of wine and as the celebration began to die down, Jesus gave them new wine and became the life of the party. At the Sea of Galilee, when the people hungered for food, Jesus fed 5,000 souls because he was the bread of Life. At Bethany, when Lazarus lay dead, and wrapped in grave clothes. Jesus called him forth because he was the Resurrection and the Life.
In Jesus is life and that life is the light of men. We need that life in us. We need more than heartbeats and pulses. We need new life. We can no longer function with just flesh and blood. We need new life. We need a life that is complete and abundant - life on its highest level. We need a life of joy, where the world can’t give it and the world can’t take it away. We need a life of Spiritual truth where we are free to worship God in Spirit and in Truth. And I am convinced that if we had new life, would not be ashamed to Worship God.
If we had new life, we wouldn't have to be urged and prodded to give a testimony because we would have something worth talking about. If we had a new life, we wouldn't have to depend on the choir to sing our favor song because we would have a song in heart and rhythm in our feet. If we had life, we would say amen, and hallelujah even when the preacher says something we don't want to hear.
If we had a life, new life, our churches wouldn't be dead but they would have Zoë: animation, creativity, and energy. There'll be some life in the choir; there'll be some life in the congregation, they’ll be some life in God's church only if we had new life.
The good news is that we have the potential for new life. We can have this substance called ‘Zoë.’ We have a potential for living large. Myles Munroe in his book, “Releasing Your Potential,” puts it like this, "All men are sent to the world with limitless credit but seldom draw to their full extent.” In order words, we have divine credit cards on new life but we never exhaust our credit limit. We have the potential to live like Jesus but we are just barely living. Our life is like a forest during winter. The earth is full of roots, not one of which knows how to live. The trees are full of buds, every one of which is closed and bandaged so that it cannot expand. All things are populous but curdled; congealed but restrained. Although our natural state is full of high, god-like powers, they are in a condition of bondage and inactivity. Life is there but it is in bondage. It needs a new season to release it. Our lives need to experience a new season. I know it’s summertime but fact is that many of us are still bitter cold. We need some fire to warm things up. We need new life and that life is in Jesus. Well, how can we have new life? After all, it was promised it to us. Jesus did say, "I have come that they might have life and might have it more abundantly." So how can we have new life? How can we get some excitement into our daily routines? How can we have some excitement and stay awake during Sunday's service? How can we have new life?
Well brother John tells us “to all who received him, who believed in his name,
He gave power to become children of God.” In other words, we must received Jesus and believed in Jesus name to have new life; that is to have a life of power.
First, we must receive Jesus. We must receive him as the Word of God. To receive the word is to receive it in three dimensions. We receive the word as scripture, as proclamation, and as Christ. To receive the word of God is receive it as the written word, the spoken word, and the manifestation of Christ. Now many of us received the written word of God but not the spoken word of God. We accept the Bible, as the written word of God. However, as soon as the preacher pronounces the word
And calls us to respond to it. We catch an attitude with God's preacher. We do it all the time. Many of us are doing it right now. Come on now! We can all agree that the bible says, ' Let everything that hath breath praise the Lord.’ We can all agree that scripture tells us, ‘let the redeemed of the lord say so.’ Yet, when the preacher tells us to ‘let us praise the Lord,’ or say ‘amen?’ many of us won't clap our hands. We won't shout for joy, we won't say anything or do anything to praise the Lord. Why? Because we won't receive the spoken word of God. Oh, we like a good word, but we don’t like doing the good mentioned in the word. We like a well-constructed sermon, but we won’t let the sermon construct our lives. We are hearers of the word but not doers of the Word. But I am reminded of the words of James, “Be ye doers of the word and not hearers only deceiving your own selves. For if any be a hearer of the word, and not a doer, he is like a person looking into a mirror seeing himself and going away forgetting what he looks like.” In other words, the word of God tells us what our lives look like. It is a mirror in which we our reflection. And like any mirror we see an image that we like or that we dislike. When we look into a the mirror, we see an image that we try to adjust and/or improve. Just consider what we did this morning, when we looked into the mirror. We did everything we needed to fix ourselves up. We washed our faces, combed our hair, putted on make-up and adjusted our clothes. We did everything we need to do in order to look beautiful. Well, the Word of God is the same as the mirror. It shows us an image that needs to be improved. God sends the word to the preacher, and we see ourselves in the sermon, Sunday after Sunday. But, we do nothing to change our image. And, what I’m trying to tell you this morning, church, is that a mirror is being held before us this morning. It’s time that we take a good look at ourselves. And if you could see what I see, you’ll fix yourselves up. Yet, we can no longer look in the mirror and not change the ugliness that we see. In order to have new life, we must willing to change the man in the mirror. And I’m not talking about a cosmetic change but an inner change - a change of mind, where we decide that we can no longer go on just making it, just getting by, just subsisting. NO! We must decide that we want to change this old image, this sub-standard life into a new image and new life. To get that new life we, must first receive Jesus. To receive Jesus we must receive God’s word through scripture and through God’s preacher. And church it must be understood that we preach not ourselves but we preach Jesus Christ.
I tell you to gain a new life; we must receive the word of God. And that word is Jesus. We need new life and to get that life we must receive Jesus. But, we must also believe in Jesus. We must believe that Jesus is really and truly the Son of God, and that He is God. You see, many receive Jesus but they don't believe in Jesus. The Muslims receive Jesus as a prophet, but they don’t believe he’s the Son of God. Some Jews receive Jesus as a teacher but not as the promised Messiah. Even the Jehovah Witness receives Jesus as the Son of God but they don't believe He is Lord. For us to have a life - life in Jesus - we must believe that Jesus is Lord. Because only belief in Jesus makes sense of life. Only trust in Jesus gives purpose and meaning to life. If Jesus was only a righteous man, then there is no need to give him our complete obedience. If Jesus is just a religious myth, then there is no need for us to trust him at his word. If Jesus matters at all, He matters supremely. And if he matters supremely, the most important thing in life is knowing him. If we believe that Jesus is the son of God then we would want to know him; not just about him but know him intimately. We would come to Bible Studies and know him we would come to Sunday school and know him. We would pray without ceasing and know him. We would learn to trust and obey and to take him at his word. We would know him. To believe in Jesus is to know him. It is to know that he is none other than God alone. If we would believe in Jesus we would know that every thing he says is true. We stop existing and begin living.
We would know that we had power to be children of God. And power is the manifestation of new life in Jesus. One cannot say that he is in Jesus and not have power. Yet, many of us fall into the trap of thinking that power is beyond our reach. We let the world manipulate and intimidate us because we think we have no power. But as children of God we would know our self-worth and demand the respect we rightly deserve. You see, to have power in our lives is to have the courage to be ‘somebody.’ Paul Tillich, a systematic theologian, once said that, “power is the ethical act in which we affirm our being in spite of those elements which would deny us self-affirmation.” To be a child of God is to be somebody. It is to have power to change our social situation regardless of our circumstance. We can create some good out of the darkness in our lives. Out of our experience with abusive relationships we could create support groups for women and children who have been victims of abuse. Out of our struggle with addiction, we could create education programs for high risk groups. Out of our battle with AIDS and other disease, we could create advocacy groups to help others with those diseases.
If we had power, regardless of our circumstance, regardless of our situation we could use our lives as a witness to someone else. We would realize that regardless of what we have done in our past, and who we were in our past, is irrelevant now because we have receive grace upon grace to cover our transgressions. We would not limit our perspectives on how others view us, because we are children of God.
We can do all things through Christ Jesus who strengthens us. We can go to Jesus with any need and find that need supplied because we have power. We can go to Jesus with any ideal and find that ideal realized. A person in love with beauty will find the supreme beauty. The man who needs courage will find the pattern and the secret of being brave. The woman who feels that she cannot cope with life will find the Master of Life and the power to live. The boy or girl who is conscious of their sin will find the forgiveness for their sin and the strength to be good.
We will have power to become his children because we have received Jesus and believed in his name. And I am so glad that I know that I have power in his name. I can ask in his name, and it shall be given unto me. There’s power in his name. I can call him Jehovah Jireh and God will provide. I can call him Jehovah Nissi and, in warfare, the Lord will be my banner. I can call him Jehovah-Shalom and the Lord will give me peace. I can call him Jehovah Shamma and the Lord will be there. I can call him Jehovah Tsid ken-ooo and God will be my righteousness.
But just in case, I forget those names, I think I’ll just call him Jesus, the Christ, the Son of the Living God. For by no other name shall man be saved.
Jesus, my rock, my sword, and my shield.
Jesus, my wheel in the middle of a wheel.
Jesus, my water when I am thirsty,
Jesus, my bread when I’m hungry.
Jesus, the alpha and omega, my beginning and he is where I’m going to end.
