We Are His Handiwork

We Are His Handiwork

Sunday of the Fourth Week of Lent

Sunday of the Fifty-Second Week of the Great Pandemic 

Piety

“Thus, says Cyrus, king of Persia: All the kingdoms of the earth the LORD, the God of heaven, has given to me, and he has also charged me to build him a house in Jerusalem, which is in Judah. Whoever, therefore, among you belongs to any part of his people, let him go up, and may his God be with him!”  2 Chronicles 36:23

[T]hat in the ages to come, he might show the immeasurable riches of his grace in his kindness to us in Christ Jesus. By grace, you have been saved through faith, and this is not from you; it is the gift of God; it is not from works so that no one may boast. For we are his handiwork, created in Christ Jesus for the good works that God has prepared in advance, that we should live in them. Ephesians 2:7-10 

And this is the verdict, that the light came into the world, but people preferred darkness to light because their works were evil. Everyone who does wicked things hates the light and does not come toward the light so that his works might not be exposed. Who lives the truth comes to the light so that his works may be clearly seen as done in God.  John 3:19-21

Study

Yesterday I was listening to a rendition of “Gone at Last” by Paul Simon and realized how the lyrics like John’s Gospel and the other readings for today give hope that Lent and this international nightmare might be ending soon.

The night was black. The roads were icy

Snow was fallin’, drifts were high

And I was weary, from my driving

And I stopped to rest for a while

I sat down at a truck stop

I was thinking about my past

I’ve had a long streak of bad luck

But I’m praying it’s gone at last 

Since March 11, 2020, the world has had a long streak of that bad luck.  Some have called the past year a never-ending Lent.  Yet, as Christ-followers, we know that the darkness of Lent yields to the spring of Easter light.  Eventually. Jesus is trying to give that hope to Nicodemus and us.

In Lent, Jesus continues preaching, and although we are in the final turn, there are still several furlongs to race before the joy of Easter are upon us.

Once in a while, from out of nowhere

When you don’t expect it, and you’re unprepared

Somebody will come and lift you higher

And your burdens will be shared

Yes, I do believe, if I hadn’t met you

I might still be sinking fast

I’ve had a long streak of bad luck

But I’m praying it’s gone at last 

Jesus is imploring Nicodemus the Curious to embrace the light and the truth.  However, at this point, the metaphor may be too abstract for Nicodemus or the disciples.  Neither the newcomer Nicodemus nor the disciples who have been around the block with Jesus can quite grasp its meaning. 

They need the cold, hard reality of the pandemic of Good Friday and the darkness of the tomb before it can be rolled away and reveal the light of the Son. 

Action

I was no more prepared for Lent than I was for the pandemic.  However, with a little dose of humility followed by a chaser of listening, maybe the truth will still come to me.

Nicodemus accepted the cornerstone that his peers rejected.  He took the steps that God also ask of us. 

Come to me all who are burdened. My yoke is easy, and my burden light. (Matthew 11:30)

 

The sheep that belong to me listen to my voice. (John 10:27)  

 

“Do this.” (Luke 7:8) 

Do we have the response-ability that Nicodemus shows on his “Fourth Day” (Sunday) of Lent? Can we overcome our “streak of that bad luck?” With a foundation of humility and obedience, let’s come to God, listen to Jesus, and act with the Holy Spirit.

Hang in there; it’s almost gone at last. This is the truth: Light comes into the world to conquer darkness.

God, your eternal love and eternal patience gave rebirth and renewal to people of all ages, creeds, races, and nationalities. Please help us to overcome our transgressions so that we might believe in you. Help our belief run deep and intense. We don’t want to have a bumper-sticker faith that easily peels off at the first sign of risk. Please give our faith the strong roots it needs, so we have confidence and fortitude to take our devotion to the public square and speak up when others condemn you. Amen.