Both this Sunday and next Sunday we hear Jesus call out to us with the words "Peace be with you." There are many times in my life, and I am sure in yours as well, that we need this in-breaking of peace. Below is a sermon I delivered two years ago, it was my first time back in the pulpit after my surgery. As I read through this sermon earlier this week I was reminded of many of the similarities between my journey now and my journey then.
I pray God's peace will enter into your hearts.
Peace - John 14: 23-29
The past two months have been an
experience, to say the least. It has been a time filled with ups and downs.
There have been the emotional extremes of tears to laughter in matter of
moments. It has been a time when I walked in some dark valleys and trekked to
the highest peaks, a time when I have experienced and seen the face of Christ
in amazing ways. It is through this journey that my eyes have been opened to the
multitude of ways that I have seen God active in my live and in the lives of
others. It has been experience I will never forget
One of the most amazing experiences
happened on the day of surgery. Pr. Jennifer and I had arrived at the hospital
a little before 5:30 in the morning. It had been a short night, but luckily we
had driven up after confirmation the night before.
We didn’t have to wait long before
they lined all of us patients up and took us back into these little cubicles. They
had me put on one of those wonderful little gowns with the natural air
conditioning slit up the back. Then they came and took vitals, drew blood, all
of that fun stuff.
After we got settled in, Pastor
Pedro from the synod office popped his head in, he sat and talked, shared
scripture, and a prayed.
It was getting closer now.
At this point, I still felt rather
relaxed, considering everything that was about to happen. Pedro left, and
another friend who had driven out from Minnesota
popped his head in. He was only there a couple of minutes, and then came the
surgical team. Doctors, nurses, and anesthesiologists, just piles of people
coming in and getting me ready to go. Then it was time, so I gave Pr. Jennifer
a kiss, and off I went.
As I was being wheeled down that
very white hallway, the nerves started to set in. I started thinking all of those
“what ifs.” You know those. Those questions that pop in your head and bring the
deepest, darkest fears to the surface.
Then, as they opened the doors to
the operating room and were about to wheel me in, it came to me.
Peace.
Peace Erik, I am here.
Peace, I am with you.
Peace, I am leading you into this
place.
That peace, that sensation that
overtook me at that moment was exactly what I needed, for I knew I was in good
hands, and I don’t mean only those of that very talented surgeon and her team.
But rather I was in the good hands of the God who led me into that operating room
and gave me the peace I needed at that time.
Peace.
Have you ever had a moment like
that, a time when you were feeling a little anxious, nervous, or upset? Then,
in the midst of that anxiety, this calming peace overcame you, and you felt
that presence, that sense of comfort, fill your entire being?
On that early morning that gift of
peace sustained me at a time when I needed it the most. It was the gift of
knowing that I was not alone but rather God was right there, leading the way
into the operating room, carrying me.
Today, in the gospel, we hear Jesus
give us the assurance of that peace in our lives. This is taking place near the
end of his ministry. It is the last night he has with his disciples, and so he
has gathered them around, and he teaches them one last time.
During this teaching he tries to
let them know that he will be leaving them soon, but even though he is going,
he is not leaving them alone. No, Jesus, their friend, their rabbi, their Lord,
he is not going to abandon them. He is sending an advocate, the Holy Spirit, to
be with them until his return. But he doesn’t stop there
Jesus goes on and says – Peace I
leave with you, My Peace I give to you.
Now the peace Jesus is talking
about here is a little different than we might think of today. It is not a
peace like end of a war or battle. It is not a peace like the laying down of
arms. But rather peace for Jesus is two things. It is comfort for the troubled
heart and courage in the midst of fear.
Comfort and courage
These are two things we desperately
need in our lives. Comfort and courage, this is what gets us through the dark
valleys of life that we sometimes stumble into.
Comfort and courage, it is the
blessing of being able to face head-on whatever struggles we have and knowing
we are not doing so alone.
Comfort and courage, it is the gift
of peace, of God’s peace and the assurance of God’s presence in our lives.
You see, that is why Jesus is
talking to his disciples about peace on this night. He is about to make that
walk, that Holy Week walk, all the way to Golgotha.
But before he goes, he wants his disciples, he wants us, to make sure we know
that he will not ever leave us alone. Christ will always be with us.
No matter where we go, no matter
what we do, Christ will be there. He will shower us with his comfort, his
courage, and his peace, all so we know that we are his children, and we always
will be.
To put an exclamation point on his
teaching Jesus then lives out his gift of peace during his last days. For
throughout the events of his arrest, trial, and crucifixion, as well as in the
resurrection, Jesus embodies the peace he offers here. He lives out this peace
as he gives his all so that we might live, and live eternally. Yes, Jesus wants
the disciples to know that even though he is leaving them in human form, he is
not orphaning them. He wants us to know that the love he has for all his
children, for all of us, is so great that he will come and give us the peace,
the comfort, the courage we need to make it through whatever the world throws
at us.
I have no doubt that this was the
peace I was given as I was wheeled into that operating room - the comfort and
courage of God as I went into surgery.
I remember being wheeled into that
operating room, now more relaxed than I was when I was wheeled down that white
hallway. I was told to help move my body from the bed to this cold operating
table. I remember laying back on this stainless steel, and I felt the nurse
strap my feet to the table.
But that’s it. That’s all I
remember.
With the exception of the sensation
of comfort, of peace, surrounding me.
Yes it was that peace that gave me
the assurance that all would be alright, and it was. Yes, God promises he will
walk through life with us, every step of the way. He will grant us the peace
that we need to celebrate this gift of life and share it with others so we can
go out into the world trusting in the fact that our God is a God filled with
love and compassion. A God who blesses us with peace, comfort, and courage, and
he does all of this out of the great love that he has for each and every one of
us, his children, his beloved. Yes, he does all this for you.
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