Seeds

SEEDS
Presented at County Line Brethren Church on June 14, 2009.
RCL, Year B, Proper 6
Scripture passages: 2 Corinthians 5:6-17 & Mark 4:26-34

J. Ray Klingensmith was an older-than-dirt, raw and earthy, some would call him irreverent (but that was not true), never-quite-retired, grace-filled Brethren minister whose parish consisted of college students; some of whom had lost their direction, some of whom weren't sure if 'direction' even existed, some of whom didn't want direction, and some of whom thought they knew the one and only acceptable direction. I have spent a reasonable length of time in each of these categories.

During my time at Ashland College, as it was called then, I think all students were required to take a Bible intro class, even if it had nothing to do with your major course of study. I entered the Introduction to New Testament class believing I knew everything. After all, I had grown up in the church. My father was a pastor. I had performed satisfactorily on Bible Quiz teams that took me all the way to General Conference. I knew the Bible, and especially the New Testament. Contributing to my cocky attitude was that 90% of the class did not know the Bible very well. J. Ray Klingensmith was my professor. Early on, I was “earning” A's on virtually every test without really doing any studying. Without any significant preparation, I could easily contribute to class discussions and ask intelligent questions. Surely I was a favored student. That is, until Klingensmith gave us an unannounced pop quiz on material that was not covered in class discussions. I did very poorly on that test. Mind you, that was the only test (as I recall) that I did poorly on. To top it off, at the end of the semester, he gave me the grade of a B!!! Just as I did when I was a child, and as I continue to do today sometimes, I thought it was unfair of the professor to pull that kind of shenanigans.

I'd been had, taken to the cleaners and taught a lesson. J. Ray, wise as an owl and cunning like a fox, had given me exactly the grade I deserved. So much for grace, huh? To a college student, it did not feel much like grace. I later learned that grace has nothing to do with “letting it slide” but is all about someone else paying a price.

J. Ray was one of several influential mentors in my life. Some of those include Charles Munson, who recently passed away, Jerry Flora, Dr. Richard Dobbins, Walter Schuman and Dr. Joseph Schultz. It was wonderful to see Doris a couple weeks ago when we were back in Ashland.

When I read passages such as has been read for us this morning (2 Corinthians 5:6-17 & Mark 4:26-34), I am reminded of some of the teachings I received at Ashland, and more specifically, the tension between the “already” and the “not-yet.”

So if anyone is in Christ, there is a new creation: everything old has passed away; see, everything has become new!

It sounds so complete and so final. The old has passed away. The new is come. We feel brand new. We pass the word to others. We enjoy the new life in Christ. Just as P.O.D. sang,

Everyday is a new day
I take forth to every breath I take
I won't take you for granted
So I learn from my mistakes
It's beyond my control
Sometimes just lettin' it go
Whatever happens in this lifetime
So I trust in love
You have given me peace of mind

I, I feel so Alive
For the very first time
I can't deny You
I feel so alive
I, I feel so alive
For the very first time
And I think I can fly

Sunshine upon my face
A new song for me to sing
Tell the world how I feel inside
Even though it might cost me everything
And now that I know
This will be outta control
This I can never turn my back away
Now that I see you
I can never look away

Sonny Sandoval, a member of P.O.D. had this to say about this song in an interview with MTV.

Everybody realizes at some moment ... that you don't want to walk through life bummed all the time. No matter what it is, if you can remember just that one thing that brings you alive and that wakes you up. For me, it's the love I have for my family, for these guys, my faith and my belief in God. Once I know this love, no matter what I go through, I can always hold on to that to give me that joy and give me that hope. It's one of our most uplifting songs. (source: MTV)

This is the “already” part. We are new creations, now. We do not have to wait until we get to heaven. We are given a new life, a new mind, new relationships and new power.

But the very next song on this album by P.O.D. is “Youth of the Nation.” Here's a portion of the lyrics of that song.

Last day of the rest of my life
I wish I would've known
Cause I didn't kiss my mama goodbye

I didn't tell her that I loved her and how much I care
Or thank my pops for all the talks
And all the wisdom he shared

Unaware, I just did what I always do
Everyday, the same routine
Before I skate off to school

But who knew that this day wasn't like the rest
Instead of taking a test
I took two to the chest

Call me blind, but I didn't see it coming
Everybody was running
But I couldn't hear nothing

Except gun blasts, it happened so fast
I don't really know this kid
Even though I sit by him in class

Maybe this kid was reaching out for love
Or maybe for a moment
He forgot who he was
Or maybe this kid just wanted to be hugged
Whatever it was
I know it's because
[chorus:]
We are, We are, the youth of the nation

Inevitably the mountaintop experience is blown away by everyday problems, our own failure, or the sound of a gat. Talk about being brought back down to earth? This is definitely the “not-yet” part. We may be a new creation, but there is something about it that is not yet finished. So, maybe it is not as complete and finished as we thought it was? And yet we are told that we are a new creation.

And this is not the only tension referred to in this passage. Paul talks about being at home in the body and away from the Lord. He contrasts faith and sight. Indeed, we may say that this tension between the “already” and the “not yet” is a key to understanding the Christian life.

St. Augustine viewed the tension described in this passage as his basis for understanding history in his classic “The City of God.” Make no mistake, this is a crucial passage in the New Testament that defies cute little sayings, black and white thinking, and dogmatic theological positions.

How are we to resolve this? Are we new creations now, or do we have to wait for the future? We are given a clue about how to resolve this a few verses earlier.

So we are always confident; even though we know that while we are at home in the body we are away from the Lord for we walk by faith, not by sight.

It seems to me that we are forced to accept the tension. It is not either/or. It is both/and.

We are forced to accept that we are now at home in the body. This is the moment. This is the 'right now.' This is the nitty, gritty, dirty, ugly, painful side. This is the side where people make mistakes, where people are disrespectful, and where other people are incomplete – just like us.

But Paul does not leave us there. We are drawn into the tension as he talks about walking by faith and not by sight. There is something going on inside and through us that is not always easy to see or observe, which is the new creation.

Part of walking by faith means looking through the looking glass into the future and catching a vision of the change God has already completed in us, but which is not fully visible. It is the looking glass of faith that enables us to see and/or trust what shall yet come to pass, what we shall be in the future. And without the looking glass of faith, we will not be able to see this new creation; either in ourselves or in other people.

I have brought in my binoculars to help demonstrate this. I wonder if someone would hold up something printed for me to read. First, I want to see if I can read it without assistance. Now, I would like to see if I can read it using the binoculars.

While it seems we are “not yet” completed in the present, certainly we have “already” been completed by the act of our Lord Jesus Christ. This places us in the gap between “already” and “not yet.”

This tension between the “already” and the “not-yet” means that even though I am standing here in the present and aware of my failures which accentuate my feeling of having “not yet” been completed, by looking into the looking glass of faith, I am able trust that I have “already” been completely made a new creation in Christ Jesus.

From now on, therefore, we regard no one from a human point of view; even though we once knew Christ from a human point of view, we know him no longer in that way.

In the same way that God has given us a new and wonderful vision of who we are and whose we are, Paul here encourages us to see one another with this same set of binoculars.

We are too often limited in our ability to see one another with these new “faith goggles.” It is easy to examine one another for specks which need to be removed. It is way too easy to investigate ourselves and one another for authenticity or to search for evidence of inconsistencies through a magnifying glass.

But that is not how God looks at you: that you have lots of specks that need to be removed or that you can barely stand up (spiritually) on your own two feet, or that you are not doing very well as a Christian. No, God looks at you as a completed, new creation.

This is the same way that God looks at your neighbor that makes you angry, as a completed new creation. This is the same way that God looks at your fellow believer who slighted you – as a completed new creation.

We are invited here to view ourselves and one another through the binoculars of faith, believing in what God has accomplished in the future, the 'not-yet.'

I will tell you that the more we are able to walk by faith (by seeing ourselves and others as God sees us – as completed, new creations) the more we will experience love for ourselves and one another, liberty in Christ, and abundant living – just as P.O.D. described in the first song. It is not a denial of our current condition of still being at home in the body. It is a different view.

We have driven back and forth from the Midwest to D.C./Virginia and North Carolina many times. Perhaps you've seen those signs informing you that in a mile there will be a “scenic lookout.” These lookouts are typically near the top of a mountain overlooking a vast valley with other majestic mountains observable in the background. While we are driving along, one may be able to gain a momentary glimpse, but certainly not enough to really enjoy it. If you want to enjoy the view, you must stop, pull off the highway and gaze at the amazing panorama.

In the same way, while we are traveling along the highway of life, watching out for merging traffic, irresponsible drivers and gigantic potholes, it behoves us to pull off the road sometimes, take out our binoculars and allow faith to view ourselves and one another like God does – completed new creations.

I am on Facebook. And yes, my own propensities for addiction have kicked in yet again. I'm staying up too late at night. I think about it during the day sometimes. It also seems to provide me with some enjoyment. This propensity to go overboard is something I need to pay attention to. Nevertheless, it has given me great joy to reconnect with long lost friends and classmates.

When we consider the parable of the mustard seed in the context of our discussion today, there are some important applications we would do well to pay attention to.

We never know what seeds we are planting for the kingdom. Only God knows that. Nevertheless, the individual who functions by faith is one who is becoming aware of the very-long-term ripple effects of the choices we make today. The person of faith may not be able to see the end result of the seeds which have been planted, but the person of faith knows that there will be fruit. The person of faith may not know what kind of fruit, or how much fruit, or where the fruit will grow, only that God will cause the seed to grow and produce fruit.

J. Ray Klingensmith and all those other college and seminary professors were people of great faith. They believed that what they did would somehow have a long-term impact on the lives of their students. I'm here to say that God continues to bring forth the fruit of their labor.

Never doubt that your efforts on behalf of other people will have a great impact. Faith enables us to trust that it will.

And so, walking by faith means seeing ourselves (and our neighbors) as God sees us – completed new creations and by trusting that God takes care of the seeds and grows the fruit. He will transform our labor into his fruit. His kingdom will flourish. He is in charge after all. And the future is in his hands.