En el nombre de Dios: nuestra luz y nuestra vida... In the name of God, our light and our life. Amen.
There are times being a modern English-speaker is a disadvantage. For example, when we use the word “you,” it could be singular - an individual, or plural - y’all. We can’t tell except from the context, and sometimes, not even then.
This matters when we read the ancient texts in our Bible. All of our readings today, use the plural “you,” referring to the community. There is not a single reference to you, the individual. Yet most of us apply what we read in the Scripture to ourselves as individuals. How does this speak to my experience or guide my actions...?
A more faithful approach is to apply the lessons of Scripture to us, the people of God living in community. Salvation in ancient Israel, was always about the people of God. Salvation in Jesus is about humanity - collectively. As N.T. Wright, the Bp. of Durham once said, “there are no individual Christians.”
We know this. Christianity is, by definition a body: the body of Christ in the world. Still, we get tripped up because our cultural habit is to focus on self: my wealth, my beauty, my position, even my salvation, as if we could – or want to - extricate ourselves from the rest of humankind.
Today’s lessons offer us a refresher course on community-centered consciousness characterized by love, mercy, and compassion, or as priest and theologian Jim Marion calls it, “Christ Consciousness” or as Paul calls it in his epistle, “the mind of Christ:” wisdom taught to us by the Spirit of God enabling us to spiritually discern in every circumstance we find ourselves.
In Christ Consciousness, our relationship with God is living, dynamic, ever-evolving, potent, and actively transforming us and through us, our world. This is what Jesus’ whole life and ministry demonstrated for us. Over and over Jesus showed us that Christ consciousness takes us beyond obedience to the letter of the law to fulfillment of the law of love which forgives, restores, and reconciles all (all!) the world to God.
In Jesus we witness a beloved life lived in the world, and his world was fraught with violence, oppression, bigotry, and corruption – not unlike our world today. Yet, no matter how the world reacted to him or treated him Jesus maintained a consciousness of love and mercy even forgiving his executors from the cross on which they hanged him.
Christ Consciousness.
We don’t have to strive for this consciousness. It’s ours for the asking. All we need to do is invite it. That means, however, putting aside our goals, plans, and hopes, and putting God’s in their place.
This is denying self, or in other words, fasting, and this is the fast the prophet Isaiah is talking about. It isn’t about food. It’s about us (in the community sense of the word ) and our how we relate with God, others, and among ourselves.
Jesus uses two metaphors to teach this: salt and light. Salt was valuable in the ancient world, not only because it has the unique ability to enhance the flavor of food, but also because it preserves food, which in ancient times, often meant preserving life. Salt, however, can also be an irritant, as anyone who swims in the ocean knows.
Jesus proclaims us to be the salt of the world. We are meant to preserve life. We also are meant to irritate those who seek to destroy life, just as Jesus irritated those in power in his day.
Jesus also says that we are the light of the world. That’s both really interesting and kind of scary.
We are the light that is present in the world. This completely transforms our understanding of our relationship with God. Julian of Norwich described this in her concept of “oneing” saying, “For [God] says... ‘I am loving you, and you are loving me: and our loving shall never be parted in two.’” (John Skinner, ed., Revelation of Love, Julian of Norwich, 129.) In other words, we can never be completely cut off from God’s love – and neither can anyone else, whether they are judged to be good or evil, worthy of praise or deserving of punishment.
When Jesus says, “let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works…” it helps to remember that his Jewish listeners understood that he was talking about mitzvah - works of mercy, reconciliation, and service to others. These works glorify God because God is the source of the mercy, compassion, and love that is in us.
When we take ourselves out of the center of our universe and focus our attention and God-given gifts where God guides us, we will find our lives and ministries looking more like Jesus’ life and ministry. I hope everyone saw this in Our Annual Meeting magazine which acquaints us with the many ways Emmanuel’s light shone and glorified God last year.
This light continues to break forth from us now, like the dawn signaling a new day, a new way to be in relationship with God, one another, and among ourselves in our time. We won’t always get it right, but what I see happening at Emmanuel right now is a commitment to fulfillment of the law of love which forgives, restores, and reconciles all the world to God.
The world will often disagree with us as it did with Jesus, and push back, attempting to cover or douse our light with condemnation. That’s OK.
When those in power blame and withhold assistance from the poor, hungry, or disabled, we will continue to welcome them into our midst, offering them dignified friendship as we feed, and tend to their needs as best we can.
When those in power deride people for their sexual identity or whom they love, we will continue to proclaim that God is the creator and author of all love, and they are our siblings in the family of God.
When the world vilifies immigrants, documented or undocumented, as evil, deceitful, or dishonorable, we will continue to draw them close in community knowing they all worthy of respect because we are all one in God.
People of Emmanuel, you (and I mean y’all) are set apart as holy, consecrated to God. Y’all are salt and light. I have seen it and I can testify to it. I bless you and pray that you freely, bravely, and continually let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to God. Amen.
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