| July 26, 2009
"Who’s That Singing Outside that Boat?" Written by: Sharon K. CooperRead by: Hale Thornburgh, Chris Kester, Heidi Hernandez and Bill Ryan John 6:15-21 |
Gospel Reading
15When Jesus realized that they were about
to come and take him by force to make him king, he withdrew again to the
mountain by himself. 16When evening came, his disciples went down to
the sea, 17got into a boat, and started across the sea to Capernaum.
It was now dark, and Jesus had not yet come to them. 18The sea
became rough because a strong wind was blowing. 19When they had
rowed about three or four miles, they saw Jesus walking on the sea and coming
near the boat, and they were terrified. 20But he said to them, “It
is I; do not be afraid.” 21Then they wanted to take him into the
boat, and immediately the boat reached the land toward which they were going.
Opening
Prayer in Song:
Open My Eyes, Lord
(Author Unknown)
Open my eyes, Lord.
Help me to see your face.
Open my eyes, Lord.
Help
me to see.
Open my ears, Lord.
Help me to hear your voice.
Open my ears, Lord.
Help
me to hear.
Open my heart, Lord.
Help me to love like you.
Open my heart, Lord.
Help
me to love.
You live within me.
Deep in my heart, Lord.
You live within me.
I
rest now in you.
WHO IS JOHN’S AUDIENCE?
Who is the Gospel of John addressing? This spiritual elder and writer had a
firsthand experience of Jesus. Many
scholars believe that John’s Gospel was probably written about 70 years after
Jesus’ execution and resurrection. John
was addressing second generation Christians who were without a firsthand
experience of Jesus. They had lost connection with their original Jewish
roots. The disciples in the boat
represent those being persecuted by the Romans.
John focuses on what these frightened disciples need to “see” or witness
on an eternal and deeper level. The
word, “s-e-e, see” appears 49 times in John’s Gospel. John reveals a Jesus in whom these frightened
disciples can trust and who will be with them in the pain of Roman arrest,
torture, and bloody execution. (“See” is
spelled out because when I read this to Fred Cooper, he said is it, “sea” or “see?”)
John’s Jesus appears as a distant figure walking on the turbulent seas
toward a rocky boat of fear filled disciples.
Jesus draws closer and closer to them and he extends simple words of
assurance, “It is I; do
not be afraid.” In
Aramaic, the word Jesus is pronounced, “Yeshua.” Where John’s Gospel addresses a small group
of first century persecuted Christians, the same message of God’s mercy avails
itself to us today. Whatever our
circumstances, whether it be joy, blessing, suffering, hardship or illusion of
separateness, the same Jesus comes to each of us in different ways with a
message, “It is I; do
not be afraid.” Over two
millenniums and into a third, Christians have sung hymns and songs of letting
go into this powerful mercy of Jesus Christ or Yeshua. An example of such spiritual song of deep
trust comes to us in a simple chant composed by Bill Ryan.
“Yeshua, my
beloved, heart of the Living God in your mercy, in your mercy, we abide.”
HOPE BEYOND THE “DOOR
OF NO RETURN” The Gospel story has never been
silenced by oppression, persecution, and human struggle. In
fact, the real killer of the Gospel may be the desire for too much freedom, too
much power, and so much comfort that we lose sight of what is much deeper
inside each of us and truly long lasting.
We need to keep the history of human suffering in the memory of our
minds and hearts. The memory of the
Jesus on a cross and human suffering can move us to seek a better way towards
peace and right relationships. Likewise,
the reminder of the empty cross is important.
It is a reminder that Christ is risen.
This same Jesus Christ in the stories of John’s Gospel comes to us today
with the words, “It is I; do not be afraid.”
Some of you
may have read of President Barack Obama’s recent visit to Africa. While he was in Ghana, he visited Cape Coast
Castle. This was a cannon lined fortress
that housed slaves in dark dungeons.
Many of these people did not realize that this was the start of their
long and arduous journey where they were shipped in chains to an unknown world. The slaves walked through a corridor which
led to the “Door of No Return.” The door
opened out to the wild seas where rugged boats waited to take the slaves on an
arduous and painful journey. President
Obama stated later in a public speech before leaving Ghana, “Walking back through
those doors was a remarkable reminder that, while the future is unknowable, the
winds always blow in the direction of human progress.” Sometimes it takes time for the fruits of
love and justice to manifest itself. The
18th century United Methodist hymn writer, Charles Wesley, had a
deep passion for those captured and sold in slavery. He was largely responsible for convincing
Wilbur Wilberforce, a slave owner, to abandon the slave business. Wesley’s influence changed the whole slave
trade industry in England. While
enormous suffering continued in the slave trade, the Spirit of Jesus Christ,
his justice and mercy came to life in Charles Wesley’s own heart and life of
service.
8:30 AM Worship: FWS #2116 In the Faith We Sing Hymnal, there is a
wonderful hymn that comes to us from Ghana, Christ
the Lord is Risen,
11:30 AM Worship: UMH 404
In the United Methodist Hymnal, a timeless spiritual comes to us as a
reminder of hope from the African American tradition, Every Time I Feel the Spirit.
GOD’S LOVE AT THE CENTER OF ALL THINGS When times get a little rough or very rough for us,
we can feel very isolated from God and from each other. John’s Gospel story this morning reminds us
that Jesus is right in the middle of the storms of life with us. Jesus isn’t some separate distant reality. He’s in the midst of the whole big picture
of everything singing, “It is I; do not be afraid.” He doesn’t force himself into the boat with
the frightened disciples. He approaches
those in fear with respect and assurance.
He allows the disciples to decide whether or not they are going to trust
a song being sung to them, “It is I; do not be afraid.” A United Methodist Pastor from the Baltimore,
Maryland conference, Yolanda Pupo Ortiz, speaks of this deep trust in an ever
present God that lives in the hearts of her people through song. She states:
“When I was a young girl I learned a copla (a popular song) from my
aunt: “Singing I found him; singing I lost him.
Since I know not how to cry, I will die singing.” I think the copla captures very well the love
of music of the Hispanic people. Like
the copla, the Hispanic person carries music inside, a melody that is ever
alive. With song we praise God, talk
about our problems, and express our deepest emotions of pain, despair, anger,
and love. Hispanic worship is filled
with music. Music is to Hispanic worship
as water is to the earth or like air is to human beings.
It is the music that remains in the minds and hearts of the congregation
as they return home. It stays with us,
making very real the company of a God who is not a stranger to our struggle
but, on the contrary, is in the midst of it. The music is inside us repeating the message
that is very much alive and indeed helps us to recover, to stand on our own two
feet again, and to continue the struggle with faith and hope.”
In the Faith We Sing, a wonderful hymn from Argentine has become a
familiar one to many of us. It is a song
that our Morningside mission team shared regular with the people of Guatemala
on their recent trip.
“Santo, Santo, Santo” Faith We
Sing #2007
THE INVITATION: TRUST What’s
happening in your life right now? What’s
the week been like for you? If there
have been moments of deep struggle and difficulty life can seem isolated and
lonely. There are many ways that God
comes to us, seeks us out, and whispers through some person, through some
circumstance, or from deep within, “It is I; do not be afraid.” Solitude can provide us with a sanctuary
where we can experience the profound and deep reality of Jesus’ voice and trust
it breaking through our noisy minds in silence, “It is I, be not afraid.” Jesus himself cherished solitude. . John
wants to tell us something specific about the identity of Jesus. He went up into the mountain to pray and he
left behind folks that wanted to make him a “king” or a big shot. John wants us to
know that Jesus desires to be close to whatever human beings suffer in the
human condition. He’s ready to walk on
water alongside all of us. The risen
Jesus does not sink or drown in a sea of despair. This risen Jesus has eternal staying power.
We are invited to abide in a greater eternal mercy and peace each moment
of our lives and walk with each other while the entire human family struggles
with relinquishing a milieu of complex and stubborn fears. The Gospel of John offers an invitation and
healing to all humankind. The sea, the
storm, the boat, the land, the storm, the sun, moon, everything is all
one. There’s no Jesus outside the
boat. The Gospel of John shows us a wise Risen Jesus who is in the midst of
everything where everything is in view and accessible to his presence and
movements. Often, all we humans can
see is what is in our own boat and the fears of our own lives. The same Jesus Christ of John’s Gospel who
extended an invitation to a boat of fear filled disciples is available to each
of us. In the lectionary ready today,
Jesus does not judge or berate his friends ridden with fear. He simply extends an invitation, “It is I, be
not afraid.” The invitation is to rest
in God’s love offering and a deeper Peace that the world cannot give. No greater gift is there than this, resting
in a deep abiding spiritual reality that’s available to each of us regardless
of our personality type, tradition, culture , religious affiliation, or whether
we are rich or poor. Such heeding, such
trust, can be immensely transforming for our entire broken planet.
“Come and Fill Our Hearts With
Your Peace.” FWS 2157