A Benediction

What do I want to say now that my time with you all is coming to a close?

First—God is good and grace abounds. Never forget this simple truth found in our faith stream. We believe that God is love; that God always has our best interests in mind; that God created all things, so creation itself is a good creation; and that we are a part of that good creation. Remember that particularly when so many other voices speak the opposite—that the world is wrecked, that we are wrecks within it, that fear is the only justifiable response to all that happens, and that we need to hunker down, protect what we can. Remember that as the church struggles to define herself in this time and place, not sure where hope arises, wondering why we are becoming more and more irrelevant, and wondering how we can turn scarcity into abundance. God is good and grace abounds. There is always hope because God is always. Nothing is irredeemable, and nothing can thwart the eternal goodness of God. 

Second—every human being is a unique act of God’s creative will. Mr. Rogers is rightly getting renewed attention, especially in his simple affirmation, “I like you just the way you are.” Mr. Rogers got it. Every human being is a beloved child of God. Mr. Rogers also was wise enough to know that far too many human beings do not know who they are—that they are beloved children of God. So, he told them. You may think it silly, but think about how much awfulness could be ended with the simple recognition that you, I, and everyone else are beloved children of God. If we acted as if this were so, imagine the things that would immediately be declared intolerable and brought to an end simply because no one could ever treat a beloved child in that manner. As the church, we have this invitation to offer to everyone we meet. We have the welcome to give to any human being—a welcome so profound they will know once and forever that they are beloved. This welcome was and is the core of Jesus’ ministry. Read it, see it, and then live it.

Third—if there is more than one person in a room, there will be conflict (and sometimes it does not require the second person). Conflict is inevitable. We all have creative imaginations. We use them to see the world. But what I see is not necessarily what you or anyone else sees. When visions interact, conflict comes. We can be defeated by it, or we can use conflict as the friction to impel us forward to a place where we figure out how to bring those conflicting views into harmony—not necessarily consensus, but at least mutual respect. The church can no longer demand that it be seen as right, but rather as the place where all sorts of people with different ideas of what is right can sit together in communion. Remember Matthew the tax collector and Simon the Zealot dipping bread together in the bowl with Jesus at the first communion. No two men could have been more diametrically opposed in their views of what is right, yet, there they were, at the table of the Lord, together. They transcended and transformed their conflict into communion. So shall we, if we be true to Jesus. They went back to Point 2 above, applied it, and overcame all that divided them. And here we are, 2000 years later, living within the fellowship that began with them. Ponder that.

Finally, always remember the final option—Oh, well… Sometimes we humans get ourselves in cul-de-sacs—the dead ends where we end up frustrated, hemmed in, and without exit. Yet, modern urban planners are smart. They make cul-de-sacs round. One can always turn around and go a different direction. So can we in all things and places. There will be some people with whom the only real response is to leave. There are other people. There are other places. The work continues. When Jesus ran into resistance in his own hometown, he left, and he immediately went to another village (Mark 6:6). Mark doesn’t record it, but I easily imagine Jesus trudging back through the gate of Nazareth, muttering, “Oh, well…” Say it, then go back to Point 1 above, begin again, and keep working. That is the life of faith. That is the work of the church. Keep working. Keep working until every person with whom you come in contact knows they are a beloved child of God. 

And may God bless us and keep us, now and always, through the power of the Creator, the grace of the Redeemer, and companionship of the Spirit. 

Amen.