Who was that masked man?

May 24, 2017 1

As I prepared this sermon, one line that I read really stood out: God

humbled himself twice -- by allowing his son to come and be crucified and

by allowing us to serve as His representatives. His story has become our

story. Jesus prayer in todays gospel and the account of the ascension

add a dimension to the Easter season that is often missed. Yes, Jesus was

crucified, died, and was buried only to rise on the third day before

ascending into Heaven. In all of this, it is easy to overlook the fact that

Jesus charges man, with the help of the Holy Spirit, to carry on what he has

left undone. Instead of God on earth being confined to one body -- one

place at a time -- Gods presence is no wo be conveyed by the apostles

and those who the apostles teach. Until this week, it had never occurred to

me that Jesus had faith in man. As I mentioned on Sunday, Johns gospel

makes it clear that we are partners in the trinity -- not distant admirers or

members of a fan club. We are not simply charged with spreading the word

of God -- it is more a matter of introducing others to God with us. This

means that any glory to be had from this endeavor belongs to God and/or

the community rather than the individual Christian. It helps me to think of

 Who was that masked man?
May 24, 2017 2
how the Lone Ranger worked. Once the crisis was averted, the people

were left wondering, Who was that masked man? Many superheroes

work in the same way -- living incognito between heroic episodes. The deal

that we are offered is much richer than that. As Jesus prays before the

disciples, he says, And this is eternal life, that they may know you, the only

true God, and Jesus Christ whom you have sent. Have you ever thought

of eternal life this way -- as a matter of quality over quantity and as

happening now instead of as a promise for the future?

How would accepting this definition change your life? To extend the

Lone Ranger and superhero analogy, our heroics arent confined to a

separate identity. We dont need to look for a phone booth so that we can

prepare for our roles, and we dont need to use fake modesty or make

excuses when we are told that we just missed the hero yet again. In short,

we dont need to live two lives if we accept what has been offered to us -- a

place in the Holy Trinity. Jesus said that if we know him, we know God

also. Notice that he doesnt say that we know about God, but that we know

God. Eternal life is ours for the taking, and it can begin here and now.

AMEN