Good Things

A Sermon preached on May 26, 2019, Easter VI, at St. Augustine’s, Wiesbaden (Family Service)

Acts 16:9-15, [Revelation 21:10, 22-22:5], John 4:23-29

Our Collect or prayer for the day, began with the words: “O God, you have prepared for those who love you such good things as surpass our understanding.” Surpass is an old word that means exceed or greater than. It seems strange though on a day when we are celebrating Sunday school – both the pupils and the teachers - to pray about good things that we don’t or can’t understand. Surely, Sunday school is all about helping our children know and understand our faith? Does that mean that the teachers have not being doing their job well? [Let’s check shall we: children, have your Sunday teachers being doing a good job? If you agree, cheer.]

This is not about the quality of their teaching, or their qualification as saints: both are sure and certain! But it would seem simply that there are some good things that are beyond our understanding. What are these good things? Why can’t we understand them? And what does it mean that God has prepared them for those God loves, who are they and do we belong to that group?

Yes, we do, but not just us. God’s love is – thankfully – not just restricted to the good people of St. Augustine’s.  According to John’s Gospel this morning, the Father will love those who love Jesus by keeping his word, or in some translations “obeying his teaching.” (John 14:23) That is why Sunday school, and Adult Formation too, are so important. We can’t keep Jesus’ word or obey his teaching if we don’t know what it is. We find this teaching of course in the Bible. Just last week Robert told us all about that most important of all of Jesus’ teachings, so important that he framed it as a command, to love one another as he loves us. We also learn all about Jesus’ teaching through his actions as recorded in Scripture, but also through the actions of those who follow him. To keep his word, to obey his teaching, is to live a life of love.  God loves those who reflect the love God shows for us in Jesus.  

And what about those good things that surpass our understanding? A couple of them at least are identified in the Gospel passage. 

The first Good Thing that Jesus promises is the “Advocate, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name.” (14:26) The Greek word is Parakletos and we have lots of different translations: Comforter, Helper, Friend, Intercessor, or Strengthener. They all sound pretty good to me! One thing that this advocate will do for us is to “teach us everything and remind us of all that Jesus said.” When Jesus said this, the only Scripture that existed was what we call the Old Testament, the Hebrew Bible. One way in which the Spirit helped and helps teach us everything is through the Scripture that people were inspired to write: the stories about Jesus, and about the apostles, Paul’s and the other apostles’ letters, even the weird and wonderful Book of Revelation. But it is also to the Spirit that we pray to help us understand the true meaning of Scripture, and to make it relevant to our situation and context. 

The second Good Thing that Jesus names is “peace.” “Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you. I do not give to you as the world gives.”  (14:27) The only peace people knew at that time was the pax romana, the Roman Peace. And while it did lead to an absence of war and an increase in trade it was enforced and for a colony or client state like Judea often very violently. It was peace after war and conquest and the winner dictates the terms of peace. That is not the peace that Jesus is promising. In his letter to the Philippians, (4:7) Paul prays that “the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.” There we have that word “surpass” again! God’s peace, God’s shalom is harmony, wholeness, completeness, prosperity, welfare, tranquillity, and the constant presence of God through God’s Spirit in the heart of all believers. With this gift they need not be afraid nor worry about Jesus’ departure: “Do not let your hearts be troubled, and do not let them be afraid,” Jesus says. (John 14:27) He goes on to say (14:28) “I am going away, and I am coming to you.” His departure, first seemingly in his death, then in his Ascension is only the end of his earthly, human presence, not his spiritual presence in and with us. 

The third and final Good Thing I want to highlight today is God’s love embodied, made real in Jesus. Love is not a condition for the good things, love is one of them. In the letter to the Ephesians, (3:19) Paul prays that they will “know the love of Christ that surpasses knowledge, so that you may be filled with all the fullness of God.” How can you know what surpasses knowledge? You know it by experiencing it, receiving it, and then reflecting it back by loving others. In the words of our Collect: “Pour into our hearts such love towards you, that we, loving you in all things and above all things may obtain your promises.” God’s love comes first, we respond to this love by loving God in all things and in all people.

God’s presence, God’s Peace, and God’s Love. These are very good things that surpass our understanding. We don’t need to understand them; we just need to accept them in faith and love.

Amen.