Luke 24:36b-48
A few weeks ago, on the morning of our first Garden Monday of this season, but before we went outside to begin work, my Mom and Becky and I sat around a table in our Fellowship Hall enjoying a sausage biscuit, grits and our chosen morning beverage. We were also doing what most people do while eating together… talking. I can’t recall exactly what we were talking about, or what prompted my Mom to say what she said, but one thing she said has stuck with me ever sinse. Like a lot of powerful statements, I have chewed on it and even shared it a few times with other groups as the weeks have passed. As I’ve recalled that morning, I believe we must have been talking about how hard it is to open up and show your true self with others, and how for some it is down right impossible. This difficulty of opening yourself up, being vulnerable, and sharing your authentic self has really interested me since entering the phase of life we call adulthood. For some reason I can’t quite figure out, as we get older we tend to silently attempt to deal with whatever issues have come to the surface. This is especially so when those issues leave us wounded.
Now I don’t know where we learned this way of life, or why the majority of us have chosen this particular path for ourselves and our wounds, but the fact of the matter is, we have. And maybe that is why the wisdom my Mom shared that morning has stuck with me. So here is what she said, “PEOPLE ARE ONLY AS SICK AS THE SECRETS THEY KEEP.” I remember Becky’s immediate response because she didn’t even have to think about it. It seemed like it was one of those responses that just comes out… we might call it a gut response. That response… “YOU’RE RIGHT ABOUT THAT” expressed my exact feelings even though I didn’t respond out loud.
I believe all moms have wisdom to share, and I’m lucky that my Mom is one who is willing to share it because I have benefitted immeasurably. I feel certain that those of you who have been taking part in our Wednesday evening studies have witnessed this firsthand and I believe you would echo my statement. That is one of the benefits of participating in community building events like Wednesday evening studies. As we briefly discussed this past Wednesday, there is an intimacy in those settings, and that intimacy allows the members of the community to share their wisdom with each other. And here’s the thing, that sharing of wisdom is beneficial to all who participate. Like everyone else who has shared their own feelings about being together on Wednesday evenings, I am so thankful for those times and for those who participate.
Now, like I said a minute ago, this particular piece of wisdom, “PEOPLE ARE ONLY AS SICK AS THE SECRETS THEY KEEP”, has stayed with me and has resonated in such a way that I am certain there is truth in that statement. And as I’ve pondered it I concluded that the type of secret doesn’t matter. Whether it was us who did something we now regret, or something was done to us by someone else or some other group, keeping it a secret only causes us to get sick. As much as these self-inflicted wounds deserve our time today I want to spend our time discussing wounds caused by others. I want to discuss this because wounds like these are exactly what Jesus himself experienced and I believe we might learn something from the way our Rabbi acted in response to such wounds. Especially when we ask, “Did he hide them from everyone, or did he freely and vulnerably display them?”
****************************************************
So, let’s turn again to the scripture Fiona read for us a few minutes ago. Now hopefully when hearing or reading this scripture our first impressions take us down many different paths of exploration. After all, I believe our best approach to scripture starts with discovering all the paths of exploration we are being called to explore and then doing the work to begin that exploration of each path, not all at one time, but doing the work to explore each path in ways that honor them. This, I believe, is the absolute beauty of these love stories that tell the experiences of certain people all those years ago. You see, when we take seriously this process of discovery and exploration these love stories become something more as they are no longer just about a certain people who lived in a certain time and a certain place. These stories actually become stories about them and about us. When this happens, I believe, we have touched on why these stories continue to resonate so deeply, and we begin to see just how interconnected everything is.
With this particular part of Luke’s Gospel we could explore such things as the truth of Jesus’ resurrection and how his appearance was not that of a ghost but was instead the appearance of a real life person. After all, this path, or this theme appears to be so central to this passage that seven of the thirteen verses deal with this single issue. Or we could travel downs paths like how key scripture is for understanding what happened to Jesus as Messiah, including his suffering and rising from the dead, or how the disciples, as witnesses of Jesus, are now called to proclaim repentance for the forgiveness of sins in his name to all nations. You see, all of these themes are present and worthy of exploration, in the same way all themes that rise to the surface when we read these stories are worthy of exploration. This week though there is one theme that has called me stronger than all of these… the theme of how Jesus calmed the fears of the disciples. It is this theme that had me thinking about my Mom’s wisdom statement, “PEOPLE ARE ONLY AS SICK AS THE SECRETS THEY KEEP.” This connection didn’t come to me at first, but once it did I found that I better understood why Jesus’ offering of his hands and feet, an act that appears simple, was really so profound that it not only calmed them, it helped me better connect with this story.
Initially I wasn’t as interested in how he calmed them as much as I wanted to better understand why their response to Jesus saying “Peace be with you” would a fearful/terrified one. I likened this to the way most people respond to the overall idea of church today. A response that is most easily described as fear, or anger or hurt. On the one hand I understand this response as sadly throughout much of history the church has done a lot to hurt, shame and even demonize people. Throughout much of history the church has marginalized and ostracized and oppressed a lot of people. So for those people I understand why they would respond in fear or terror or anger to any church’s peaceful greeting. As I further explored how a greeting such as PEACE BE WITH YOU could provoke such a negative response, I saw more clearly how Jesus actually responded and something clicked, I guess. I began to see that by focusing on the disciples fearful, terror filled response to this peaceful greeting, I was actually prevented from seeing the way Jesus responded. By getting lost in my need to understand how anyone could respond with fear and terror to a greeting of PEACE BE WITH YOU, I actually think I began to lose sight of what Jesus did. But here’s the thing, I knew something profound happened between Jesus and the Disciples in that moment, I just had to change my focus to see it. I needed to stop wondering about all the ways PEACE BE WITH YOU could spark fear and terror in someone and start wondering what it was that Jesus did. His response, I believe should be a lesson. As lesson about becoming so comfortable with our wounds that those wounds not only become the marks of own authenticity, they become the source of peace for others. You see, Jesus responded to their fear by opening himself up more fully, by becoming vulnerable in their midst, by freely offering and displaying his wounds. Maybe his voluntary selfless act of fully offering himself with wounds prominently displayed was the only way they could find the peace he offered in his greeting. It seems Jesus understood that… It seems Jesus recognized their need to know exactly who this man standing before them was and the best way to do that was to freely offer them his wounds. No need to hold back or keep these wounds a secret. That might just perpetuate the fear. Better to display them, better to expose them because this is the only way they will know.
************************************
There is something about our reaching the stage in life where we are so comfortable in our own skin that our wounds can be freely displayed. There is something about reaching the stage in life where our wounds are no longer secrets we feel compelled to keep. There is liberation in reaching that stage. There is healing in reaching that stage because now you no longer have to keep the wounds secret.
I believe Jesus’ response to the disciples’ fear teaches us as much. His wounds are his glory. His wounds make him who he is and that is a remarkably wonderful thing. His wounds are his marks of authenticity. The peace he brings in that initial greeting can’t be received until he displays his true authentic self, and the only way he can do this is to let them all see his wounds. That is where peace is found and it is not just an internal peace. This type of peace is felt and experienced by those who might initially fear you. It is the type of peace that lets others know that you are who you say you are, and there is no need for them to be scared of you.
My brothers and sisters as we continue on our journey may we strive for this kind of transformation. May we recognize our own wounds as marks of our authenticity… and may we find the courage to be more fully present, more fully open about who we are and in so doing, may we come to understand the Peace we offer ourselves and others.
Amen!
A few weeks ago, on the morning of our first Garden Monday of this season, but before we went outside to begin work, my Mom and Becky and I sat around a table in our Fellowship Hall enjoying a sausage biscuit, grits and our chosen morning beverage. We were also doing what most people do while eating together… talking. I can’t recall exactly what we were talking about, or what prompted my Mom to say what she said, but one thing she said has stuck with me ever sinse. Like a lot of powerful statements, I have chewed on it and even shared it a few times with other groups as the weeks have passed. As I’ve recalled that morning, I believe we must have been talking about how hard it is to open up and show your true self with others, and how for some it is down right impossible. This difficulty of opening yourself up, being vulnerable, and sharing your authentic self has really interested me since entering the phase of life we call adulthood. For some reason I can’t quite figure out, as we get older we tend to silently attempt to deal with whatever issues have come to the surface. This is especially so when those issues leave us wounded.
Now I don’t know where we learned this way of life, or why the majority of us have chosen this particular path for ourselves and our wounds, but the fact of the matter is, we have. And maybe that is why the wisdom my Mom shared that morning has stuck with me. So here is what she said, “PEOPLE ARE ONLY AS SICK AS THE SECRETS THEY KEEP.” I remember Becky’s immediate response because she didn’t even have to think about it. It seemed like it was one of those responses that just comes out… we might call it a gut response. That response… “YOU’RE RIGHT ABOUT THAT” expressed my exact feelings even though I didn’t respond out loud.
I believe all moms have wisdom to share, and I’m lucky that my Mom is one who is willing to share it because I have benefitted immeasurably. I feel certain that those of you who have been taking part in our Wednesday evening studies have witnessed this firsthand and I believe you would echo my statement. That is one of the benefits of participating in community building events like Wednesday evening studies. As we briefly discussed this past Wednesday, there is an intimacy in those settings, and that intimacy allows the members of the community to share their wisdom with each other. And here’s the thing, that sharing of wisdom is beneficial to all who participate. Like everyone else who has shared their own feelings about being together on Wednesday evenings, I am so thankful for those times and for those who participate.
Now, like I said a minute ago, this particular piece of wisdom, “PEOPLE ARE ONLY AS SICK AS THE SECRETS THEY KEEP”, has stayed with me and has resonated in such a way that I am certain there is truth in that statement. And as I’ve pondered it I concluded that the type of secret doesn’t matter. Whether it was us who did something we now regret, or something was done to us by someone else or some other group, keeping it a secret only causes us to get sick. As much as these self-inflicted wounds deserve our time today I want to spend our time discussing wounds caused by others. I want to discuss this because wounds like these are exactly what Jesus himself experienced and I believe we might learn something from the way our Rabbi acted in response to such wounds. Especially when we ask, “Did he hide them from everyone, or did he freely and vulnerably display them?”
****************************************************
So, let’s turn again to the scripture Fiona read for us a few minutes ago. Now hopefully when hearing or reading this scripture our first impressions take us down many different paths of exploration. After all, I believe our best approach to scripture starts with discovering all the paths of exploration we are being called to explore and then doing the work to begin that exploration of each path, not all at one time, but doing the work to explore each path in ways that honor them. This, I believe, is the absolute beauty of these love stories that tell the experiences of certain people all those years ago. You see, when we take seriously this process of discovery and exploration these love stories become something more as they are no longer just about a certain people who lived in a certain time and a certain place. These stories actually become stories about them and about us. When this happens, I believe, we have touched on why these stories continue to resonate so deeply, and we begin to see just how interconnected everything is.
With this particular part of Luke’s Gospel we could explore such things as the truth of Jesus’ resurrection and how his appearance was not that of a ghost but was instead the appearance of a real life person. After all, this path, or this theme appears to be so central to this passage that seven of the thirteen verses deal with this single issue. Or we could travel downs paths like how key scripture is for understanding what happened to Jesus as Messiah, including his suffering and rising from the dead, or how the disciples, as witnesses of Jesus, are now called to proclaim repentance for the forgiveness of sins in his name to all nations. You see, all of these themes are present and worthy of exploration, in the same way all themes that rise to the surface when we read these stories are worthy of exploration. This week though there is one theme that has called me stronger than all of these… the theme of how Jesus calmed the fears of the disciples. It is this theme that had me thinking about my Mom’s wisdom statement, “PEOPLE ARE ONLY AS SICK AS THE SECRETS THEY KEEP.” This connection didn’t come to me at first, but once it did I found that I better understood why Jesus’ offering of his hands and feet, an act that appears simple, was really so profound that it not only calmed them, it helped me better connect with this story.
Initially I wasn’t as interested in how he calmed them as much as I wanted to better understand why their response to Jesus saying “Peace be with you” would a fearful/terrified one. I likened this to the way most people respond to the overall idea of church today. A response that is most easily described as fear, or anger or hurt. On the one hand I understand this response as sadly throughout much of history the church has done a lot to hurt, shame and even demonize people. Throughout much of history the church has marginalized and ostracized and oppressed a lot of people. So for those people I understand why they would respond in fear or terror or anger to any church’s peaceful greeting. As I further explored how a greeting such as PEACE BE WITH YOU could provoke such a negative response, I saw more clearly how Jesus actually responded and something clicked, I guess. I began to see that by focusing on the disciples fearful, terror filled response to this peaceful greeting, I was actually prevented from seeing the way Jesus responded. By getting lost in my need to understand how anyone could respond with fear and terror to a greeting of PEACE BE WITH YOU, I actually think I began to lose sight of what Jesus did. But here’s the thing, I knew something profound happened between Jesus and the Disciples in that moment, I just had to change my focus to see it. I needed to stop wondering about all the ways PEACE BE WITH YOU could spark fear and terror in someone and start wondering what it was that Jesus did. His response, I believe should be a lesson. As lesson about becoming so comfortable with our wounds that those wounds not only become the marks of own authenticity, they become the source of peace for others. You see, Jesus responded to their fear by opening himself up more fully, by becoming vulnerable in their midst, by freely offering and displaying his wounds. Maybe his voluntary selfless act of fully offering himself with wounds prominently displayed was the only way they could find the peace he offered in his greeting. It seems Jesus understood that… It seems Jesus recognized their need to know exactly who this man standing before them was and the best way to do that was to freely offer them his wounds. No need to hold back or keep these wounds a secret. That might just perpetuate the fear. Better to display them, better to expose them because this is the only way they will know.
************************************
There is something about our reaching the stage in life where we are so comfortable in our own skin that our wounds can be freely displayed. There is something about reaching the stage in life where our wounds are no longer secrets we feel compelled to keep. There is liberation in reaching that stage. There is healing in reaching that stage because now you no longer have to keep the wounds secret.
I believe Jesus’ response to the disciples’ fear teaches us as much. His wounds are his glory. His wounds make him who he is and that is a remarkably wonderful thing. His wounds are his marks of authenticity. The peace he brings in that initial greeting can’t be received until he displays his true authentic self, and the only way he can do this is to let them all see his wounds. That is where peace is found and it is not just an internal peace. This type of peace is felt and experienced by those who might initially fear you. It is the type of peace that lets others know that you are who you say you are, and there is no need for them to be scared of you.
My brothers and sisters as we continue on our journey may we strive for this kind of transformation. May we recognize our own wounds as marks of our authenticity… and may we find the courage to be more fully present, more fully open about who we are and in so doing, may we come to understand the Peace we offer ourselves and others.
Amen!
