April 28, 2024 ☩ Easter V

From the Psalm: “All the ends of the earth shall remember and turn to the Lord, and all the families of the nations shall bow before him.”[1]  Reaching back into the Old Testament is important for a couple of interlaced reasons.  In the reading from Acts of the Apostles, Philip explains the Scripture reading that the Eunuch is reading from Isaiah.   In their discussions, Philip explains how Jesus fulfills the Scripture readings.

Philip, according to this Psalm, is also fulfilling Scripture, following in Jesus’ footsteps to bring the Good News to the ends of the earth.  On any ancient map, Ethiopia is effectively the ‘end of the earth’ to which Philip is bringing the Good News.  After baptizing the Ethiopian Eunuch, Philip then travels north along the Mediterranean Sea spreading the Good News on this ‘edge’ of the earth as he travels along the coastline.

Philip gives us a holy example of following Christ and spreading such an glorious account of God’s Incarnate presence in the world – and this example is not simply passive piety, sitting in a peaceful state.  Philip encourages us – by example - to go out and spread the same Good News.

The first letter of John continues to press us to an outwardly active Christian life.  “Beloved, let us love one another…”[2] begins the reading.  John, the author of this letter, is conveying early that love is outward work.  He didn’t hope for us to simply feel love in ease of life or butterflies in our tummies.  And John knows that love has a cost as he connects love to God’s revelation in the Christ and we know what happened to our Messiah upon the cross.

Notably, John tells us something crucial to remember – that God loved us first.  Again, our lives as Christians are being urged to live the love of God, to be one with God in that love.  As such, we are called to love first.  We don’t wait to receive respect before showing respect.  If God abides in us, then we have all the strength in us to love first, call first, write first, be compassionate first.  Be first – “let us run with perseverance the race that set before us”[3] and may we, as Paul says in his first letter to the Corinthians, “run in such a way that [we] may win [the prize].”[4]

Paul’s motivation is “for the sake of the gospel, so that [he] may share in its blessings.”[5]  May we be of one mind with Paul.

Now, we have all the encouragement to endure the race of loving first.  We are encouraged by Paul, John, and Philip to abide in God so that God’s love may be perfected in us.  And it is this source of begin connected to the source of all love, the vine that feeds us as the branches, the river that supplies water to irrigate the fields – pick your image – that provides us the endless support and strength to be steadfast in loving others as it is understood as an activity, a holy work, and one we do for the sake of God not for reciprocity’s sake.

Jesus tells us in John’s Gospel that God is glorified by our abiding in Him.  Again, not a passive activity of how we might view a branch static, and in one place, upon a vine; rather, it is an active life giving process of drawing nutrients and sustenance from the vine as the source to provide the fruits we were designed to produce.

All of our Christian life begins with hearing God’s Word, knowing the life and love of Jesus Christ, and finding how all things are connected to this source of life.  And we are not just connected to Christ and God, but we are in a deep, tangible, and integrative relationship with God.  We abide in God, and He in us.

May we recognize this truth, and realize the power we have in spreading the Good News in ways that changes others’ lives, like the Eunuch who immediately desired Baptism.

Now, the image of the vine that the Gospel author gives us can be a little unsettling.  The branches that do not abide in the vine will be pruned and burned – utterly destroyed.  I tend to read into this a personal diligence to keep our lives free of the clutter that diminishes us, so that the parts of us that are life-giving (which we find in the course of our lives are the things that are tied to God) can thrive and grow well.  The healthier those branches, the better they produce. 

         So, what in our lives needs pruning?  What don’t we need to keep in our lives – what habits, innocuous (or seemingly harmless) or obviously detrimental, can we forego?  And let’s embrace these questions as a community – how do these same questions apply to us as a parish so that we may encourage healthy growth in ministry and community?  I don’t entirely ask this question as a rhetorical question – but I encourage ensuing discussion – emails, phone calls, or even between one another at coffee hour and in passing. 

         Let us embrace the potential to be whisked away as Philip was, and embrace the possibilities for ministry in a new landscape without hesitation.  Abide in God, so what really matters is made clear.

Amen.

[1] Psalm 22:26, NRSV.

[2] 1 John 4:7, NRSV.

[3] Hebrews 12:1, NRSV.

[4] 1 Corinthians 9:24, NRSV.

[5] 1 Corinthians 9:23, NRSV.