Sunday, August 18, 2024

Sermon for August 18, 2024; John 6:51-58

 

Rev. George Miller

August 18, 2024

John 6:51-58

 

Today is our third officially- official Sunday together. 

 

It’s our last Sunday in John’s Gospel.

 

It’s our First Sunday Funday in which our amazing Michele is going to share the art of architecture and how to create something out of anything.

 

Kind of reminds us of Genesis 1-

 

“In the beginning when God created the heavens and the earth, the earth was a formless void and darkness covered the face of the deep,

 

while a wind of God swept over the face of the waters.

 

Then God said, ‘Let there be light,”: and there was light.”

 

Creation. Imagination. Play.

 

What a wonderful activity to share with our youth, families and anyone else, young, old, or middle aged who wish to attend.

 

To come together, to fellowship, to imagine, to explore.  But here is the thing about architecture-

 

things that can be physically built, can be physically destroyed.

 

Things we build with stone and brick, Legos and pipe-cleaners can always be dismantled and destroyed, knocked down by winds or washed away by water.

 

BUT, but the things we build, the things we create with our hearts, with our minds, our spirits- they are eternal.

 

And no distance, no space, no time, no natural disaster can wipe them away.

 

Architects build that which can be destroyed;

 

God creates that which lives on as long as we have breath, and we believe.

 

Genesis teaches us how God creates; Jesus shows us how to exist in the eternal, and we are all so fortunate about that…

 

Today is the final part of Jesus’ conversations with the crowd after he has fed them with 5 loaves and 2 fish.

 

The people sailed across the lake to see him.  They’ve been reminded of their ancestors.

 

They’ve shown their disbelief because they knew just where Jesus went to school.

 

Today Jesus shares more about the Bread of Heaven, and he goes a step further, discussing eternal life.

 

The people and the disciples don’t get it.  “This teaching is just too difficult” they say.

 

And that’s understandable, because there is a good chance that everyone is thinking way more with their logical brain than engaging with their interactive heart.

 

There is a very good chance that Jesus is actually talking in the abstract, in the creative and emotional realm that allows true Genesis to take place.

 

People hear the word “eternal” and they often think about time.

 

But the original meaning of “eternal” has nothing to do with time, it has to do with quality.

 

When people hear “eternal,” they think it means “forever and ever with no end.”

 

But the original meaning of eternal is about value, beauty, joy.

 

For example, think about that time in American history that people refer to as our “Camelot.” 

 

It was an era seen as filled with hope, progress, possibilities, a time of being that still shapes our thoughts and wishes today.

 

But the fact is that America’s “Camelot” was just a three-year period in the early 60’s.

 

3 years is not a long time at all, but yet, that era has stayed with us, informed movies, styles, discussions about how we can be the best citizens we can be.

 

That period of time in America’s history is in many ways “eternal.”  It did not last forever, but it has forever left an impact.

 

When Jesus discusses the Bread of Heaven and receiving the gifts of Eternal Life, he is most likely talking about how we can live a life of hope, progress, possibility.

 

A more recent illustration of “eternal” is the life of Glenn Scott, husband of Margit, who sadly died at age 58.

 

Though his life was way too short, Glenn built homes, raised an amazing family, went on world-wide excursions,

 

He ate delicious foods and made a difference in his community through ecological advocacy.

 

Glenn lived a Christian life through the works of his hands and feet, and in doing so, he lived an eternal life.

 

“Eternal” is such a beautiful word and such a stunning concept, because it means-

 

we are not limited by how long we live, or where we dwell or who we know.

 

This Eternal Life being offered by Jesus Christ is a life that offers ways of personal peace,

 

-means to make a difference amongst family, friends, our neighbors;

 

-wisdom in where we put our energies, what we do with our days;

 

-sanctuary for when we find ourselves scared, sad, unsure;

 

-relationships with people who are present, pleasing, and playful.

 

When Jesus discusses Eternal Life, he is referring to places like St. Lucas where for 144 years we have found ways to-

 

share the Word, educate, offer spaces for people to grow vegetables, play sports, eat Walkable Waffles,

 

even a place to lovingly bury and honor our dead.

 

People came to Jesus expecting miracles to baffle their eyes; instead he says words that illuminate their hearts and bring them closer to God.

 

Jesus offers us eternal life.

 

Life that goes beyond a garden, life that goes beyond the wilderness,

 

life that even goes on beyond a Friday Cross and a Saturday tomb.

 

Jesus is the Bread of Heaven,

 

here to feed us, nourish us, and remind us that he is a Savior who cares about quality,

 

who wants to see us be architects who co-create lives that are filled with hope, filled with progress, and filled with possibilities.

 

The eternal gifts of Heaven are already here for us to build with;

 

Jesus Christ is the Genesis, the beginning, of how we do so.

 

For that, let us say Amen.

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