Drinking at the Well of Living Water

Sermon text for January 25, 2009:
John 4:5-42
Preached at Bennett Presbyterian Church

Dr. Nicodemus is confused and perhaps mortified by Jesus who has just said to him, “You must be born again if you want to see the Kingdom of God.” The image of a grown person crawling back inside a mother’s womb did not present an attractive possibility. Yet Nicodemus very much wanted to see the Kingdom of God.

“Born again”, “born anew”, “born from above” each phrase describes a phenomenon that some say is the mark of a true Christian. But no one is quite sure what it means.

Three high school youth groups gathered in a mountain resort for their annual “snow camp”. The snow was falling softly outside and the flames from the fireplace cast a warm glow in the room. The speaker that night was talking about being born again. All at once a young girl shrieked and danced to her feet. “I just accepted Jesus” she said. “I am born again”. Other young people followed her lead and danced in joy at being born again. But Jean, a thoughtful fifteen year old in my group remained seated and began to cry softly. She felt nothing like what the others were describing and she wondered what was wrong with her. Didn’t Jesus love her? Why wasn’t she born again like the others? Jean was inconsolable.

Many of us understand Jean’s questions. Maybe we’ve never experienced anything like what others describe as being born again. Listening to our friends may cause us to wonder if something is wrong with us. Have we missed out on something important? If we wonder about these things then we are in good company because Dr. Nicodemus didn’t understand either. Our lesson from John provides a commentary on the idea of being born again. It is not everything we need to know, but it is helpful.

One day a lonely, rejected Samaritan woman made her way to Jacob’s well to get water. It was about mid-day and the other women of the village have long since gone home. The women usually gathered at the well in the early morning to talk with one another and share each others’ lives. We can imagine the chatter, the laughter, and even the shared tears when one of the women was grieving.

But the woman John describes is not welcome in the company of women. Her living situation is questionable, her morals suspect, and the other women want nothing to do with her. From their perspective she is a husband stealer and not to be trusted. So she went to the well long after the others have gone home. On this particular day as she drew near the well she saw Jesus sitting there, and she was not happy. A woman by herself had nothing to do with men in public places. To add to her problems, Jews and Samaritans were enemies and had as little as possible to do with one another.

“Give me a drink”, said Jesus. While this seems innocent to us, it was a serious breach of etiquette. “How is it that you a Jew, ask for a drink from me, a woman from Samaria”? asked the woman. Jesus responded, “If you knew the gift of God, and who it is that is saying to you, ‘give me a drink’ you would have asked him and he would have given you living water.”

“Living water,” the words touch something deep inside of the woman. Her soul is parched, and Jesus offers her the refreshment of “living water”. The woman probably imagines living water to be a spring or artesian well. If there is such a thing, she can draw water any time she wants and she will not have to bear the sarcasm and dirty looks from the other women.

She doesn’t understand, but she is interested. Jesus tells her to go and get her husband. “I have no husband” the woman admits. After five tries at marriage, she is now just living with a man. Jesus responds to her honesty by telling her all about herself.

It is an uncomfortable conversation. She tries to avoid her discomfort by arguing theological differences between Jews and Samaritans. But Jesus knows that the conversation is too important to the woman’s life to join in mind games with her. Finally he tells her, “I am the Messiah.”

It is a turning point in the conversation. Everything depends on what the woman decides to do next. She can continue to argue, she can run away so she doesn’t have to deal with her life, or she can begin to wade in the living water. She is literally at the moment when her life can begin again.

Notice what has happened here. Jesus cares enough to break convention and speak to the woman. He loves her enough to offer her the precious gift of living water. He refuses to play intellectual games with her and he accepts her unconditionally. And the woman who is valued for the first time in her troubled life, allows Jesus to change her life. In this story the change is quick and powerful. Within minutes the woman began spreading the news of Jesus to the people of her village. But this is not the end of the story. We are not privy to how the story ends, but we can say with some confidence that the woman only began a process that would take the rest of her lifetime to complete.

The process of being born, or being born again, begins a lifetime of growth and change. Those who speak of being born again as if it is the end instead of the beginning, miss the point.

Presbyterians have two words that help us talk about being born again, and then the rest of the story. The first word is “justified”. We are justified at that moment when we come to faith. In that moment we are assured of our salvation, but we are far from the end of our faith journey.

The second word we use is “sanctification” which is the rest of the story. It is the process that begins when our salvation is assured and lasts for the rest of our lives. Sanctification is a partnership between us and God that makes us more holy or more like God.

The story of the Samaritan woman at Jacobs Well tells us about the moment when she became justified and began the process of sanctification. And the woman’s experience with Jesus may help us understand our own baby steps in faith. Because of the woman we believe that Jesus cares enough to stay with us, even when we think we have him outsmarted. Because of the woman we look forward to the precious gift of living water. The moment when we have our first, immature ideas about Jesus we receive our first sip of refreshing, cleansing, living water.

Like the woman at the well, let us ask Jesus for the “living water” that “wells up within us” and brings us to eternal life. And then let us allow the water to cleanse and refresh us, in our journey toward holiness.

Copyright © 2009 by Dwight R. Blackstock

The Power of Baptism

Sermon text for January 11, 2009:
Mark 1:4-11
Preached at Thornton Presbyterian Church

Baptism is one of the great privileges of the Christian faith, and one of our greatest joys. When I baptize a baby I feel like my whole being is smiling, and when I baptize an adult I literally feel my spine tingling with joy. And nothing is more sure of putting a smile on your face than Baptism, because as often as we have witnessed it, it is still a very special moment.

But baptism means different things to different people. For some it is like an insurance policy that you get just in case something terrible happens. Many years ago I was asked by a mother whose baby girl had died moments after birth if I would baptize her so she would go to heaven. My heart broke for the mother as we talked about her baby, and baptism, and the love of God. I offered to do the baptism but first I shared with her that faith teaches us that baptism is not necessary for salvation, and that all children have a standing invitation to come to Jesus who once said, “Let the little children come to me and do not forbid them for as such is the kingdom of God.

So for some baptism carries life and death proportions while for others it is just a good excuse to throw a party. Every once in a while someone without a church affiliation will call the church and ask us to baptize a baby on a certain date, usually the next Sunday, because the invitations to the “Christening” party are already in the mail. Usually they don’t know why we baptize, but they know that others have received baptism, and it is a good time to celebrate.

For people of faith, baptism symbolizes our children’s joining us in the family of God. It makes us feel good, because it strengthens our bonds with each other. But what if baptism is more than that? What if it is more than strengthening bonds, or becoming a part of the Body of Christ? What if baptism is more like signing military enlistment papers just as a war is about to begin? If we can set aside our common understanding for just a moment, I think we’ll see that these “what ifs” are not so far fetched.

Mark tells us that John the Baptizer lived and preached in the wilderness near the Jordan River. John preached so powerfully that huge crowds, moved by his message, repented of their sin and were baptized. But why the Jordan? Why wash in the muddy Jordan when there were many others streams, or even the Sea of Galilee that might have served just as well?

The answer lies in the importance of the Jordan in the history of the People of Israel. Centuries before the time of Jesus, the Jordan formed the eastern boundary of the Promised Land. Under Joshua’s leadership the people moved across the Jordan and moved into the future God had prepared. This crossing of the Jordan marked the beginning of the conquest of Palestine and the starting point of the Kingdom of God.

Throughout the centuries the people retold stories of crossing the Jordan River and entering the Promised Land. In some ways it was Israel’s finest hour and the time when God seemed most near to the People. Not surprisingly the people yearned to experience God’s blessings again. They hungered for renewal in their personal lives, and certainly in their national life as well. Over the years many believers returned to the Jordan in a faithful remembering, to re-enact the moment when their ancestors first moved into the Land which God promised them. These mini-dramas were like prayers of hope.

And so it was that John called people into the wilderness of the Jordan, to a re-enactment of the ancient story and to the possibility of living once more as People of the Promise of God. It was a time of renewal, of cleansing, and of claiming God’s promises. The newly baptized and renewed people went back into their communities intent on reclaiming the Promised Land from Rome. Their ancestors took the Land from the Canaanites and under the power of Baptism the believers would take the Land from Rome. So baptism became a dangerous symbol of resistance which set believers apart.

And so it was that Jesus went to the Jordan to be baptized by John. While he did not need forgiveness, his baptism provided a living symbol of resistance. It helped the people believe in a new and better day. After his baptism Jesus moved into the community declaring the Kingdom of God while others thought that they lived in the Kingdom of Rome.

The Bible tells us that as Jesus came up out of the water he saw the heavens opened and the Holy Spirit descended upon him. And the voice of God confirmed Jesus’ special status, “You are my beloved Son, in whom I and well pleased.” In Mark’s gospel this baptism seems to be Jesus’ enlistment papers. From that moment on he lived conspicuously in opposition to existing power structures, so that by the end of his life leaders of his own people hated him, Herod wanted to kill him, and Pilate was afraid of him. Clearly Jesus’ baptism set him apart from the power structures of his day. And I suggest that in our baptism we also live in opposition to the existing powers. We don’t have to confront people or wave a flag. All that we need to do is live differently and tell others why.

I struggled to find a way to illustrate what baptism should mean to us and then I remembered a story I read a few years ago about Jews who insisted on living in the City of Hebron. Hebron is a hotly contested City on the West Bank – in other words it is under Palestinian authority. Both Jews and Muslims claim the City rightfully belongs to them because tradition says that the patriarchs and matriarchs of the faith are buried there. About two hundred Jews lived there at the time the article was written, surrounded by a couple of hundred thousand Palestinian Muslims. These Jews stay there despite persecution and even death threats because their faith tells them to offer a Jewish presence in that place. They present an alternative way of looking at the world in a place that is clearly hostile to their witness.

This is the way our baptism into Christ calls us to live in the world. We offer an alternative to the way others live. Our baptism should encourage and empower us to demonstrate the glory of God by being the opposition to the way things have always been done. Our baptism is a badge of honor which we need to wear bravely in a world that does not understand our values.

When we understand our baptism in this way – as enlistment papers
into the cause of Christ we will one day hear the voice of God say, “You are my beloved child, with whom I am well pleased.”

Copyright © 2009 by Dwight R. Blackstock

From Him We Have All Received Grace and Truth

Sermon text for January 4, 2009:
John 1:10-18
Preached at Eagle River Presbyterian Church, Avon, Colorado

Today is the last Sunday in the Christmas season. In some ways knowing that may seem beside the point. We’ve already celebrated Christmas day. We’ve returned the gifts that didn’t fit, or that we just didn’t like, and we have either rejoiced or mourned over the bowl games that were played just a few days ago. But according to the church calendar this is still the Christmas season.

The Christmas story in the Gospel of John is very short and different from the birth accounts in other gospels. He says simply, “and the Word became flesh and lived among us ... from his fullness we have all received grace upon grace ... grace and truth came from Jesus Christ.”

Sometimes I wonder how we experience grace. For example, is there is any place in your life which is truly grace–full? Is there any place without the pressure to perform, or to conform? Do you have anywhere where you are completely at home and comfortable?

My guess is that for most of us these kinds of places are extremely rare, and to be cherished. I think that most of you will understand when I say that we are almost always under pressure to live up to someone else’s expectations, and we fear what will happen if we fail. Sometimes the consequences of not living up to expectations are severe. We might lose our jobs, and perhaps even face some kind of legal sanction. Sometimes not living up to expectations might mean a frown from a loved one that melts us on the inside. And even sadder, many of us are not even comfortable with ourselves. We are too fat or too skinny, too opinionated or too passive. Maybe we judge ourselves to be failures in God’s eyes. Graceful places are hard to come by. It is hard to find relationships in which we are accepted. Period. No questions asked.

Scriptures teach us that before time began, God existed in at least three different expressions: Creator, Word, and Spirit. He tells us that these expressions are so intimately related to one another that they do not exist separately. So for example even though God is Creator, nothing was created apart from the Word. The Book of Genesis tells us that in creation, the Spirit of God “hovered over the face of the deep”.

God saw when people began to leave our mark on the world, creation was too confrontational, too judgmental, too wrapped up in guilt and shame. But God’s vision for humanity looked very different. In Jesus Christ, God re-created the world as a graceful place where believers find love and acceptance just because we are. John’s Christmas story says, “And the Word became flesh and lived among us … full of grace and truth.”

In Emmanuel God became as close as the next door neighbor, or the person sitting next to us in the pew. In the new creation God chooses to embrace us before judging us. Love replaces condemnation; grace and acceptance replace guilt and shame. This is old news, yet we still struggle. Maybe God accepts us, but surely not others that we know. Not that man! Not that woman!

In our house the family room is what I like to call the “’No’ Free Zone”. In the family room our grandchildren can do pretty much what the want without being judged. They cannot do things that are dangerous and they cannot be defiant. But other than these things the children are accepted just as they are. Just because.

My prayer for you this morning is that each one who comes through the door of God's house, enters into a “’No’ Free Zone;” a place of grace and acceptance; a place where mercy and grace fills each and every heart. If this sounds good to you then take a deep breath and heave a sigh of relief. We no longer live under judgment. We are free to love one another because in Christ Jesus we have experienced grace, truth and love.

Copyright © 2009 by Dwight R. Blackstock