A Heavenly Vision

Read: Revelation 21:1-6

 

Fifth Sunday of Easter - April 28, 2013

The Rev. Kenneth R. Elkin

 

It was a great committee.

It met only once a year, had no responsibilities, and had great lunches.

It was called the Princeton university Chapel Advisory Council.

One of its members, Dr. Tom Long, reported that each year they would gather and hear from the chaplains what was going on in religious life on campus, ask any questions they framed, offer any insights they thought they could, and enjoy lunch.

But one particular year, an old lawyer asked the chaplains an awkward question.

“Tell me how the students at the university are morally these days,” he said.

“I want to know how they live ethically.”

The chaplains looked at each other.

Which one wanted to tackle that question?

Finally the Methodist chaplain piped up, “In addition to the usual dose of hedonistic behavior, a number of students really do a lot of good in the community.

Many of them tutor after school.

They serve in soup kitchens and in overnight shelters.

Some help build Habitat for Humanity houses...”

As the Methodist chaplain continued to talk, the Jewish chaplain got this bemused look on his face until finally the Methodist chaplain just had to ask, “Did I say something funny, rabbi?”

“No,” replied the rabbi.

“You're saying that many of the students are good people, and they are; they do good things in the community.

I was just thinking that the one thing which they lack is a vision of salvation.”

In the silence that followed, the rabbi continued, ”You know it is true.

If you do not have some vision of what God intends to do in repairing creation, you can't get up and go to a soup kitchen every day.

Sooner or later the world will finally beat you down.”

 

A vision of what God intends, of what God is doing, of what God will yet do, of what God has already done.

That is what is needed here and everywhere.

Pointing to this vision is the business of our Second Lesson today, the passage from Revelation.

One might think of the whole Bible as one long journey toward this great hymn, this vision of where everything is headed.

Of course there have been many detours along the way: Cain's murder of his brother, Hebrew whining in the wilderness, David's dalliance and theft of another man's wife, disciples fleeing from Jesus, Paul and Barnabas arguing, and so many more.

But they have only been detours, not derailments.

Still, the vision is in front of us:

See the home of God is among mankind.

He will dwell with them; they will be his peoples, and God himself will be with them; he will wipe away every tear from their eyes.

Death will be no more; mourning and crying and pain will be no more, for the first things have passed away.

And then what is heaven like?

In a trace, John sees it: no church buildings needed because God's presence is everywhere.

No need of streetlights or sun, because the glory of the Lord shines everywhere.

No pollution dangers, no hospitals, no crazed idiots blowing up race-side crowds or anyone else, no prisons, gates always open to the presence of God, all walking in safety.

Is this just “pie in the sky” foolishness?

William Willimon says it directly: “I am absolutely persuaded that we can not live responsible, faithful, and ethical Christian lives in the present until God gives us a clear and compelling vision of his own future.”

 

I had a conversation with several of my colleagues in ordained ministry this week, and we were musing a bit about how can we keep at this task for 30 or 35 years and more.

We agreed that we were glad that we didn't have the repetitiveness of a factory line job.

Each day in ordained ministry is bound to be different from any other day, with different life-situations to share with members of the parish and others.

It is a mercurial existence; things can seem to be going smoothly one minute when a disagreement can pop up with a ripple effect throughout the organization.

So there are numerous heartaches along the way.

We agreed, though, that variety alone would not be sufficient for continuing in this work.

There is a much deeper and more important reason that we keep going.

It is not our church, nor is it the congregation's church; it is the body of Christ.

He is the one who calls it into existence, who feeds it along the way, and most importantly, the one who gives it its goals.

And this is where the vision of Revelation directs and comforts us.

It presents Jesus as promise, as future, as the resurrected Lord, as the one who eventually will bring his creative work to completion.

It is not “pie in the sky in the sweet bye and bye”; it is a transformed heaven and earth.

God's city is coming to earth; this is what God is doing to restore and complete creation.

Revealing God to us, God with us.

 

“We should do better” we thunder at someone.

“Why?” he retorts.

Well now, where does the conversation go next?

“Because I say so!” is merely a resort to power that ends as soon as the person is out of your sight.

As we fumble for an answer, where we land will depend on which kingdom holds us as citizens.

Whether people treat each other selfishly and hatefully, or whether we serve one another, depends on which kingdom has claimed our hearts and minds.

As our Bible study writer Dr. Harry Wendt regularly says, every square inch and every beating heart has been claimed by the Lord God and counterclaimed by Satan.

And the battle is going on in and around us all the time.

In Holy Baptism, Christ Jesus said to each one of us: you are mine and I will never let go of you, even when you fuss and fume, even when Satan tempts you in a hundred different ways, even when it would be easier for you just to forget the whole thing.

That is the nature and the depth of his love for us, the love and the promise which he can fulfill because of the resurrection.

That is the city full of light in John's vision, the city come upon us and transforming all of existence.

“We should be better” we thunder at someone.

“Why?” he retorts.

And now we are working on an improved answer.

It is because of the way things will be when God is finally done with creation.

The end of things should direct what we do now.

 

So when we leave our gathering here today, give the world a little sample, a hint, of what God may want to be doing with you and me.

The world may think that we only belong there, but as Paul reminds us in Philippians [3:20] our citizenship is in heaven, and it is from there that we are expecting a Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ.

So daily by what we say and do we need to show our passport and let the cranky world know the city to which we belong.

How can we keep at it, day after day, year after year?

Because it is not up to us; it is Jesus' gift to us, the new Jerusalem coming...his continuing action:

water for the thirsty, strength for the weary, hope for the beleaguered, love for the bereft.

It is a vision of what God intends, of what God is doing, of what God will yet do, of what God has already done.

That is what is needed here and everywhere.

Pointing to this vision is the business of our Second Lesson today, the passage from Revelation.

One might think of the whole Bible as one long journey toward this great hymn, this vision of where everything is headed. 

And so we rejoice, for Christ is risen. He is risen indeed. Amen.