Loading...I hope that by now you have learned that I like to be surprised by Scripture. Well, not by scripture so much, but by all the different ways it can be interpreted. I will never say I know it all, and I will always want to dig a little deeper to better understand. This week’s readings from Acts and John had some surprises for me. Good, God-ordained surprises that I needed to learn to better understand how God works in this world.
On Monday, the Bible study group dug into today’s lesson from Acts. Each of the five of us said we weren’t very familiar with these few verses. As we discussed them, we realized that we just did not have enough background information to put the story of Stephen’s martyrdom into perspective. And you know what? We had to go back to read from the beginning of chapter 6 to learn why Stephen was stoned.
To put it plainly, he was challenging the beliefs and practices of political and religious leaders. He had been called to serve with the Apostles, along with a handful of other men, to feed the hungry. The Apostles could not find enough hours in the day, to find balance, to focus on prayer and spread the Word of God, telling the stories of Jesus AND feed the hungry people. They needed help to focus on their spiritual responsibilities and to teach. They needed these laypeople, so to speak, to do the work of feeding the hungry.
Stephen did exactly that. He served food to the hungry. But he was also filled with the Holy Spirit and began to heal, teach, and preach. He was falsely accused of blasphemy, accused of “saying things against this holy place and the law; for we have heard him say that this Jesus of Nazareth will destroy this place and will change the customs that Moses handed on to us” (6:13-14).
Maybe to defend himself, perhaps to help them recognize that he knew the stories of his people, the Jews, Stephen provides a synopsis of the story of the Israelites, beginning with Abraham, moving on to Joseph and then to Moses, and in the verses before our lesson today, he says,
7:51-53 ‘You stiff-necked people, uncircumcised in heart and ears, you are for ever opposing the Holy Spirit, just as your ancestors used to do. Which of the prophets did your ancestors not persecute? They killed those who foretold the coming of the Righteous One, and now you have become his betrayers and murderers. You are the ones that received the law as ordained by angels, and yet you have not kept it.’
He was bold, like Jesus, when he challenged these authority figures by pointing out their own behavior—persecuting prophets, killing John the Baptizer, killing Jesus, betraying, murdering, and ignoring their own stories, laws, and prophecies—and the people he spoke to became enraged, so much so that they took him out of the city, and definitely did not recognize the irony in what they were doing when stoned him to death.
And in the short reading we heard from Acts, we are introduced to Saul.
The five of us at Monday’s bible study were perplexed. So, we had to figure out what was going on here, too. We did not go very far, but we did learn that, yes, this is the first mention of Saul, who would eventually become Paul.
In our NRSV translation it says coats were laid at his feet, which we all thought meant that he was important. In other translations, it says he held their coats, like a servant. What was the deal? And to be honest, we didn’t really come to any conclusions. Except one. Maybe we should read the book of Acts this summer for our Bible study so we can learn more.
Then, I began my study on the Gospel from John. It’s another more familiar story; one we might hear at a funeral, about dwelling places being prepared for us. A story where Thomas and Philip are the ones questioning Jesus, instead of Peter.
What caught me off-guard in this story is that I don’t recall ever considering the possible tones of voices these two Apostles might be using when asking their questions.
It’s amazing what can happen when you change the tone or the way words might be emphasized.
The Gospel reading today is a part of the Farewell Discourse. A part of the teaching and praying and preparing Jesus is giving the night of the feet washing, of the Last Supper, of the walk to and prayers in the Garden of Gethsemane. It is the night of Jesus’s arrest.
Here, Jesus is trying to help the disciples find peace, even as he tells them he is going to go away, be arrested, and ultimately killed. He is gently letting them know that even though he won’t be with them very much longer, at least physically, he is not abandoning them.
When Thomas says, “Lord, we do not know where you are going. How can we know the way?” And when Philip says, “Lord, show us the Father, and we will be satisfied.” We might think they are incredulous, or frustrated, or even angry because, yet again, Jesus isn’t making himself as clear to them as they need.
At least that’s how I’ve considered these verses in the past. And maybe that’s because I might sometimes be impatient and unable to make sense of Jesus myself.
But what if, instead, we hear these comments and questions in a completely opposite way. What if they truly understood what Jesus was saying? That he was God’s son. That Jesus was about to leave them. That what was coming next was going to be not just unfair, but gruesome?
What if they were unsure that they were ready? What if they were afraid of being left alone? What if they were already grieving?
What if, when Thomas says, “Lord, we do not know where you are going. How can we know the way?” He is really saying, “How can we do this without you?”
What if, when Philip says, “Lord, show us the Father, and we will be satisfied.” He is wondering if, when Jesus is gone, will they no longer feel God’s presence among them?
If I were to put this scene into something more contemporary, into something most of us have experienced, it might look like family members surrounding their matriarch or patriarch, or any loved one, lying in a bed, nearing the end of their earthly life. It makes me think of those moments when the people around that bed begin to realize all that is about to be lost with this death, who are experiencing the mixed emotions, and then remembering all the unasked questions, the unspoken conversations, the recognition that this might be the last opportunity or the reality that these opportunities are soon to be lost forever.
I think Thomas and Philip and probably all those listening to Jesus that night are in that space. And that image, those human emotions that come with impending death, changes the tone of their questions and comments, doesn’t it?
And while it might seem like Jesus is frustrated with their questions and comments, what if his tone is not one of sarcasm or reprimand, but instead is a tone of comfort, guidance, and protection for these people who have given him so much of themselves, trusting in him to lead them into a new way of living?
He uses words that remind them that they have the ability, attitudes, experience, and knowledge to keep his memory alive, his work still active, his words still relevant in a world that needs it all.
Like a dying parent or grandparent saying, “Don’t be afraid. You will always have a part of me, because I taught you how to be a good human. You have all the secret ingredients in my recipe box, or my tools, or my business, or land, and sense of humor. I will always be a part of you. In the colors you surround yourself with, the flowers you plant, and in the DNA that helps you see the world. You have my apologies, my forgiveness, and my love. Always.”
You have my love. That is what Jesus is saying to these people on that night. If they are to believe nothing else, trust in nothing else, this is what Jesus is leaving them with. He might use a lot of words, but sometimes, don’t we all? Sometimes saying “I love you” isn’t said through those three words. Sometimes we try to explain our love in obscure ways, through curious actions, in story, parable, and prayer.
In Stephen’s story, he tells the people about God’s love for them through the brief reminders of Abraham, Joseph, and Moses. In these last hours of Jesus’s life, he tells his beloved friends what they most need to know: that everything they have been together will live on through them, that love will not end at that cross, but that it will live on in all those who live and love like Jesus.
Then. Now. Forever. Amen.
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