Let us pray: Come Holy Spirit, enter these words. Carry them into our hearts that we might know who we are, and whose we are. Amen.
What really matters in your life? When it all comes down to it, when things are laid bare, what’s at your core? Who are you? Whose are you?
Recently, two family friends were diagnosed with cancer. One is nearly 70 years old and has an amazing life practicing law, advocating for the health of our oceans, supporting “fishermen’s wives” and their families, and traveling to Greenland on scientific research vessels. We are doubtful that we will celebrate her 71st birthday together. Another is a young man who prefers baseball and sports to academics and who is a fiercely loyal friend. He will be a Senior in high school next year and I’ve watched him grow up. This past Thursday he underwent a procedure to place a port in his chest to begin chemotherapy treatment. The outlook is daunting. We are praying, hoping and waiting. Life is tough and often doesn’t make sense. It’s in these moments of trauma, that we discover what really matters: connectedness, family, community, being loved and loving others. During the times we face agonizing unknowns, questions, and death, during the pandemic when we are isolated, separated and scared, we need to re-member, to come back together as members of the body of Christ, to re-collect and to re-mind ourselves who we are and whose we are. I don’t know how else we can manage to make it through the tough times.
Our Epistle for today is full of information about who we are. Paul tells us that we are, “…Blessed in Christ with every spiritual blessing.” We are blessed with everything we need to be connected, our spirit to God’s spirit, our spirit to others’ spirits, our spirit to the spirit of creation. Who are we? We are God’s blessed children, blessed by God with what we need to connect, survive and thrive.
We are also chosen, chosen by God in Christ before the world was made! What? This is some pretty amazing, cosmic stuff. Paul is letting us know that God chose us to receive and share Divine love before the foundation of the world. Wow! It feels good to be chosen, and chosen by God! What great honor and value God has given to our lives. Not only that, but in Christ, God has declared us “blameless”, no shame, no blame, through the healing power of love on full display in the life, death and resurrection of Jesus. But wait, that’s not all…God also planned for us to become children, adopted by God, receiving full, legal family status and benefits. God “destined us for adoption as children though Jesus Christ according to the good pleasure of God’s will…” It’s hard for me to comprehend how the Creator of the universe has claimed our lives, validated us, valued us, and longs for us to become a part of God’s loving family. This family membership comes with freedom. We are redeemed, released and forgiven by the grace of God. It’s 100% free, a “can’t be earned” gift that God is delighted about, just waiting to see the look on our face when we unwrap and realize what it is!
Paul says it’s “lavished on us.” I imagine a heaping serving of Saturday breakfast biscuits lavished with gravy, overflowing sustenance, like love lavished upon grandchildren. This is helpful, healing news that we need to hear and hear and hear again. Who are we? College students, toddlers, octogenarians, bishops, new parents, middle-schoolers, we are, all of us blessed, we are all of us chosen, we are all of us blameless through love, we are all of us adopted by God, we are all of us set free, we are all of us forgiven. This is who we are. This is The Good News.
In today’s epistle we also see who God is and what God desires for our lives. Paul tells us God has “destined us for adoption…according to the good pleasure of his will, (the good pleasure of his will), to the praise of God’s glorious grace that he freely bestowed on us in the Beloved.” It makes God happy, it’s God’s PLEASURE and what God wants to do, to freely flow and bestow grace upon us, God’s adopted kids. This grace takes shape and form in Jesus Christ, The Beloved.
The Beloved. I ‘ve heard the Trinity explained like this: God is the lover, Jesus is the Beloved, and the Holy Spirit is love itself. I like that.
Paul tells us that it’s through the Beloved, Jesus, that God lavishes grace, offers freedom, and calls us into relationship. Beloved. Be loved. Be love. Do you know that Bob Marley reggae song, (“Could you be loved and be loved?”)2x
Be loved. Allow God to love, value, and validate who you are. Be loved by God. Be loved by yourself. Receive love from others. Be loved and share that love. Come together in love. Be loved and be love. THIS is what Paul says is God’s plan for our lives. God “has made known to us the mystery of God’s will…set forth in Christ…a plan for the fulness of time, to gather all things in Christ, (to gather us up, “Jerusalem, Jerusalem…How often have I desired to gather your children together as a hen gathers her brood under her wings,” God desires to bring us together, to unit us in love), so that we might live for the praise of God’s glory.” What brings praise to God? What reveals God’s glory? It is our discovery of who we are as God’s beloved children coming together, gathered in love, THIS is God’s plan for us, for ALL of us. To be loved and to be love. What really matters? Love: love that comes from God, our beloved identity, love of ourselves and love of others. What really matters? Family and community: our adoption into God’s family, our own families, biological or other, our Saint Mary’s family, our friends-- community. Siblings in Christ, in the coming weeks and months, I pray that you will reconnect, re-member, and, begin to live into your beloved identity with your Saint Mary’s family, all of us adopted kids, blessed and blameless through love, redeemed, forgiven, part of God’s plan, walking the way of love. Be loved. Be love. Amen.
