The Time Has Come: Three Voices sermon for March 17

Previously, in our studies of the Bible … In John 2:1-4, there is a wedding in the town of Cana. Jesus' mother Mary said to Him, “They are out of wine.” Jesus replied, “You must not tell me what to do. My time has not yet come.” In John 7:1-6, Jesus traveled in Galilee. The time for the Festival of Shelters was near, so Jesus' brothers said to him, “Leave this place and go to Judea, so that your followers will see the things that you are doing.” Jesus said to them, “The right time for me has not yet come.” In Mark 8: 27-30, Jesus asked His disciples, “Tell me, who do people say I am?” They answered, “Some say that you are John the Baptist. Others say that you are Elijah, while others say that you are one of the prophets.” Jesus asked them "What about you? Who do you say I am?” Peter answered, “You are the Messiah.” Then Jesus ordered them, “Do not tell anyone about me.” The last time I was up here, we talked about Mark 9: 2-9, as Jesus took Peter, James and John up a high mountain. As they watched, Jesus and his clothes became shining white and then the three disciples saw Elijah and Moses talking with Jesus. But then as they came down the mountain, Jesus ordered them, “Don't tell anyone what you have seen, until the Son of Man has risen from death.” End of flashback. Now, finally, today we come to the words, “The hour has now come for the Son of Man to receive great glory.” It’s been the same wait we go through every year, and so much shorter for us than it was for the Disciples. And we know how the story is going to turn out! Easter is an early one this year, too, so we get to relive the resurrection in all of its glory that much earlier this month. Again, Jesus tells them and us a parable, and by now you can probably tell I love diving head first into His parables. We have a grain of wheat that is only a single grain until it dies and becomes many grains. But what does that mean? Dying is shedding their solitary life to join the union of believers and finally go on to the eternal reward. On a smaller scale, we ourselves become many grains as we meet together here at our own Three Voices. Jesus has obviously accepted His fate to die on the cross for the world’s sins. And when an angel speaks to Him, that angel is not there to prove anything to Jesus … the angel is there to prove something to everyone else. Jesus is the Son of God! I remember in my youth being really excited about Christmas. It always seemed to take forever to arrive. New Year’s Day followed shortly afterwards, offering the chance to make New Year’s resolutions that I very rarely kept in a half-hearted effort at bettering myself. One Christmas is especially poignant for me now, as we watched a movie at my then-in-laws telling the story of Jesus. I don’t remember much about the movie itself but that family viewing actually became a milestone moment in my own religious journey for another reason. It’s funny how the simplest situations can sometimes become milestones as you reflect on them. It seems the film told the whole story of Jesus, not just the Christmas story of His birth. And when Jesus is seen riding a donkey into Jerusalem, the family matriarch insisted we turn it off. I thought that was kind of silly at the time. Except that now I do the same thing. The birth of Jesus is a story for the Christmas season. The story of the crucifixion is for Easter. And now as an adult I actually look forward to Easter more than Christmas and New Year’s Day. Want a gift? You aren’t going to get one more heart-felt than Jesus’ sacrifice on the cross for our sins. And the time of the resurrection this time of year seems a much better time for change than when making your New Year’s resolutions in January. Not to mention that Easter comes at the beginning of spring, so rebirth is happening all around us in nature as well. Today’s reading has a parting line that it is also time for the world to be judged. Looking around the world today, I would have to say I would not want judgment day to happen now with all of the commotion in the world. Some say they can’t wait for Jesus to return in glory … to me, it’s more like waiting for dad to come home from work when you know you’ve been bad all day. It’s not like I’m expecting Jesus to come back to the world all happy with the way we’ve honored His sacrifice by our continuing to sin. But like I said before it’s Easter time! It’s the time for rebirth! Spring is near! What a great time to rededicate ourselves to improving not only ourselves but our world around us. Another orator with the initials MJ once said he would start with “the man in the mirror,” asking him to change his ways. Easter is a great time to do a bit of retrospect. Take a look at yourself, decide what you want to change and make that effort. But at the same time, take a look also at what is great about you. What it is that is uniquely great about you, that is something you would like on a spiritual resume. Give those aspects a boost, even as you seek to change what you can. But remember, in the famous words of St. Francis of Assisi, to ask God for the grace to accept with serenity the things that cannot be changed, the courage to change the things which should be changed, and the wisdom to distinguish the one from the other. Do what you can, start with yourself, pray to God for strength. Improve what you can. Make your own imprint on the world, regardless of just how large it is. And yes, I am talking to myself just as much as any of you. Every day at work I think about just how much more I could - and maybe should - be doing. I hear compliments about how often my stories land on page 1 quite often. But that is not always a good thing. Most of the time it’s bad news, to be honest. Truth to tell, taking on the job as education reporter was supposed to be only a temporary stepping stone to get my foot in the door at a new place of employment. That job in itself almost immediately became something bigger. In just a little over a year, I’ve reported on a school shooting, a stabbing, not one but two ousters of school district superintendents … the list goes on. It’s certainly job security, but do these stories really help in any way, I ask? Maybe like the “prophets” Lynyrd Skynyrd once said, “All I Can Do Is Write About It.” Hopefully spreading the news opens up peoples’ eyes and sparks conversation. Maybe those stories do help in some way. But that introspect of myself and my work and its importance is invaluable. Take a good look in that “mirror” at your own daily lives and activities and interactions with others. Learn from the past and use that to improve the future. Reflect on your own personal “milestones” of the past and build from them. It’s the season of Easter, the time for rebirth. Jesus’ time has come. It’s also time for all of us - “all” not being solely those in this church but those of us all around the world - to really make an effort to better ourselves and the world. The time has come - so make the best use of that time that you can. Amen.