A Very Short Sermon on Disciples History (John 20:19-31)

 This is one of those stories where, when we hear it, we imagine what it would have been like to have been there, with the disciples, in that locked room. 

The story takes place on the day of resurrection. Early that morning, Jesus had appeared to Mary Magdalene, but (according to John’s gospel) no one else had yet seen the risen Lord.

So the disciples were in varying states of belief and disbelief. They wanted to believe, yet were afraid to believe; afraid to get their hopes up; afraid of being disappointed yet again; afraid that those who killed Jesus might now come for them, since they were Jesus’ closest followers.

But then: Jesus himself appeared among them. It was true! He was alive!

After this, Jesus appeared to the disciples several more times, mostly to reassure them that he would always be with them, even to the end of time.

And then, the disciples—filled with the Holy Spirit—began a movement in Jesus’s name that would eventually become the largest religion in the world.

I don’t have much time today, so let’s quickly fast-forward to the turn of the 19th century. I was asked to talk today a little about the history of our denomination, the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ). 

At that time (a little over 200 years ago) in the Ohio River Valley region, life was still mostly rural. Each small town could support only one or maybe two Christian congregations, and, in those days, the dividing walls between denominations were sharp.

So if you were, say, a Presbyterian, in a town that only had a Methodist church, what could you do? They might let you attend, but they wouldn’t allow you to participate in the full life of the congregation, and they certainly wouldn’t allow you to receive communion.

This didn’t sit well with a number of people. Among them: Thomas Campbell and his son, Alexander.

I’ve spoken before about Alexander’s frustration with having to present a token in worship in order to receive communion. He believed that participation in the Lord’s Supper shouldn’t be limited to only those of a certain denomination or congregation; it should be open to all Christians.

Here’s a quote by Alexander Campbell, which actually appears on page 338 of our hymnal: “But who is a Christian? I answer, everyone that believes in one’s heart that Jesus of Nazareth is the Messiah, the son of God; repents of one’s sins, and obeys him in all things according to one’s measure of knowledge of his will.”

Everyone who believes in Jesus and commits their life to him is a Christian; therefore everyone who believes in Jesus and commits their life to him should be welcome in the church, and welcome to participate in the Lord’s Supper—regardless of denominational background.

Alexander believed in this so strongly, that he helped start a group that aimed to be non-denominational: they called themselves “Disciples,” the most generic, non-denominational-sounding name they could think of.

Meanwhile, not too far away, a man named Barton Stone was entertaining similar thoughts. Stone gained prominence at a revival that took place in Cane Ridge, Kentucky, and later started his own movement. 

Like Alexander Campbell, Barton Stone wanted his movement to be one that welcomed all Christians. Along with a few other ministers, he formed a new presbytery in response to disagreements with the larger denomination they were a part of, but later they dissolved that new presbytery, because they feared that it would become its own denomination… They didn’t want that.

They wrote a document called “The Last Will and Testament of the Springfield Presbytery,” 

which said "we will that this body die, be dissolved, and sink into union with the Body of Christ at large." That’s what they wanted: no denominations; just the body of Christ.

And they started calling themselves, simply, “Christians”--- the most generic, non-denominational-sounding name they could think of.

In 1832, these “Christians,” and Campbell’s “Disciples” came together. Their goal was not to start yet another denomination, for there were already too many of those.

Instead, they wanted a non-denominational church that simply followed the way modeled by Jesus’s disciples in the New Testament, in those years after the resurrection.

It was only five years after that historic, 1832 gathering of Stone’s followers and Campbell’s followers that William T. Major founded First Christian Church of Bloomington, something we’ll hear more about next week.

Needless to say, our movement did slowly and eventually evolve into a denomination, despite the intentions of our early founders. But we remain a denomination focused on Christian unity… and a denomination that welcomes everyone to the Lord’s Supper. “Christian Unity is our polar star,” as our early founders liked to say, and since they believed that creeds more often than not were used to exclude people, we have never recited creeds in worship nor used creeds as a test of fellowship.

A lot has changed over the past 200 years. We still look for inspiration to the New Testament and the acts of the apostles. But we also recognize that God’s spirit continues to work in us and among us, today, making us into a church for the modern age. We have grown and evolved theologically over the years, and we continue to grow and evolve and learn.

But one thing that hasn't changed is our desire to be a church that welcomes all who seek to follow Christ. And we continue to carry out our ministry, so that—as today’s scripture says—people may come to believe that Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of God, and that through believing, may have life in his name.

Guided by Doubts and Questions (John 20: 19-31)

There are some people in the Bible who I wish I could just go back in time, and talk to. They’re the ones whose stories have captivated me, and I want to know more. I want to ask them some questions. I want more information. The Bible doesn’t tell me enough. I want to know what was going through their head, what they were feeling, and why they said or did what they said or did.

Thomas is one of those people.

He’s been given a nickname: “Doubting Thomas.” He doubted that one time… and the name stuck. 

It’s like in the movie Big Hero 6, when Tadashi is introducing his brother Hiro to all his friends… and when Tadashi introduces his friend Wasabi, Hiro makes a funny face and says, “Wasabi?”

And Wasabi says, “I spilled wasabi on my shirt one time, people! One time!!!”

Well, Thomas doubted one time, people! Yet he is known, now and forever, as Doubting Thomas.

I want to know why Thomas doubted, and what he thinks about us calling him “Doubting Thomas,” and whether he thinks that’s fair, and why he wasn’t with the disciples the first time Jesus appeared.

So: I used my imagination to go back in time, and ask him.

My first question to Thomas was why he wasn't with the other disciples the first time the risen Jesus appeared to them…had the other disciples sent him out to get pizza for everyone, or Chinese food?

When I asked him, Thomas said, “Well, not exactly. See, we were all still terrified that the Romans were going to hunt us all down. Turns out that, since Jesus had taught us to be nonviolent, Rome was content to just get Jesus. If we had armed ourselves, Rome would have gone after us all. I guess that’s one way Jesus protected us: by teaching us to be nonviolent.

But we weren’t sure. We were still afraid. And things were so confusing. And I knew the disciples were gathering, but I got mixed up on the time and the place—I think I was told the wrong time and place, although the others think I just heard it wrong—and, anyway, I wasn’t there.”

“OK,” I said. “It happens.

“So, when the disciples told you that Jesus had appeared to them, what did you think? Why didn’t you believe them?”

Thomas looked at me a moment, and I could tell this answer was going to take a few minutes… Thomas said: “You know, several of the other disciples are fishermen, and one of them—Peter—told me once about a guy who went around selling this most amazing musical instrument, a horn of some sort, that was very rare, and if you sounded that horn from your boat, it would draw all the fish, and the fish would just leap out of the water and into the boat, and you’d have the biggest catch of your life…

“So Peter paid a lot of money—I think he said it was about what he’d earn in a week of fishing—for that instrument. But when he went out on the water and blew it, no fish came. In fact, he said it was the worst day of fishing he’d ever had. Turns out, the sound of that horn sent all the fish away!

“Peter said he learned an expensive lesson that day.

“So you can imagine how Peter reacted, when Jesus appeared, and started giving him fishing advice… ‘Go out into the deep water… cast your nets on the other side of the boat…’ and so on and so forth.

“Well, Peter had never forgotten his earlier experience with the horn, so when Jesus appeared and started giving fishing advice, Peter rolled his eyes. Besides, what does a carpenter know about fishing? Peter said to Jesus, ‘Master, we’ve been fishing all night long, and haven’t caught a thing; now it’s the middle of the day, and fish don’t bite in the middle of the day’…In that moment, he doubted Jesus, he was skeptical that he’d catch any fish that day… and yet, no one calls him ‘Doubting Peter,” or, ‘Skeptical Peter.”

I told Thomas he had a good point. 

Thomas said: “Thank you!”

Then Thomas went on. He said: “One time, we were with Jesus, and this woman came up to Jesus who had been suffering from hemorrhages for twelve years. She had endured much under many physicians, and had spent all that she had; and she was no better, but rather grew worse.

“See, that person who sold Peter the horn wasn’t the only scammer around. There were many physicians and doctors around who would take your money, promise a cure, but do nothing. Their potions, their remedies, were all fake. Yet they kept convincing people to hand over their hard-earned money.”

Thomas looked more intently at me, as if he was trying to figure me out, and then he said: “I don’t know what it’s like in your time, but back in my time, you just can’t trust everyone. It’s good to be a little skeptical. It’s good to have a little doubt. There are people out to take advantage of you, all kinds of scammers and frauds, and you gotta be careful.

“But, I guess you don’t have that in the 21st century.”

As soon as Thomas said that, I thought of the many times I’ve seen friends post something on facebook, something about how, tomorrow, a new Facebook rule starts that allows Facebook to use your photos, or start charging you, or something, but that if you post this message on Facebook, saying that you do not authorize Facebook to use your photos, your data, whatever, then you’ll be protected.

And, it’s all bogus. I don’t know who made that up, but it does nothing.

And I thought of friends of mine who have received frantic phone calls from someone who they thought was their grandchild; the voice says, “Grandma, I’m in jail,” and it sounds just like their grandchild, and they say, “How come you’re in jail?” 

And they say,  “I was drunk and they picked me up and I need $3,000 right away.” And they give instructions for sending them $3,000. 

And a lot of people who receive such phone calls do send the money, because, after all, their grandchild needs help… except it’s not really their grandchild. It’s a scammer, someone who is very good at making people believe that they are who they pretend to be.

Churches are not immune to scams. I had only been here a few weeks when one of you told me you had received a fake email from someone claiming to be me, your pastor, asking you to help me out (or to help the church out) by buying and sending gift cards… It wasn’t me. It was a scammer, pretending to be me.

I didn’t feel the need to tell Thomas all this… Instead, I just said, “I do think I’m starting to understand why you might have been a little skeptical to believe, at first, the news that Jesus was alive.”

In fact, I’m pretty sure I would have been just as skeptical as Thomas. And the more I got to know Thomas (through this imaginary conversation), the more I began to sympathize with him.

After all, Thomas was not some sort of weak-faith, second-class disciple. Oh, no! Back when Jesus announced his intention to go to Jerusalem, and all the other disciples complained that Jerusalem was too dangerous, that there were people there who had it in for Jesus, who wanted to stone him to death…and they all tried to discourage Jesus from going to Jerusalem…

…it was Thomas who said, “If Jesus is going to Jerusalem, then let us go with him. If Jesus is going to die, then let us die with him.” These words of Thomas demonstrate his incredible faith and loyalty and courage; Thomas’ statement gave courage to the other disciples, and they stopped their whining and recommitted to following Jesus, no matter where Jesus led them. 

In that story, Thomas’ faith outshined the faith of all the other disciples! Because of Thomas’ strong faith, all the other disciples had their own faith renewed.

So we can’t just label Thomas as a doubter of weak faith, and leave it at that!

And, given the prevalence of scams and fake news and conspiracy theories, I think it’s a good thing to come with a healthy dose of skepticism.

Furthermore, I find it easier to believe in the resurrection because of Thomas’ initial reluctance to believe. Thomas’ doubt and skepticism are a sign to me that it’s OK to have doubts, that doubt is not incompatible with faith, that the two can and often do go together.

It makes me think of Rachel Held Evans, a great, great theologian and writer who tragically died at a way-too-young age a few years ago; she had this phrase that she would use when she would share some of her thoughts on faith… She liked to say, “On the days when I believe, this is what I believe.” 

“On the days when I believe…” That prefatory phrase implies that faith isn’t always easy, that faith is sometimes a struggle, that there will be days when it is hard to believe… and that that’s OK…

It lets me know that it’s OK to doubt, to wonder, to ask questions…

And I also recognize how, when the disciples told Thomas about Jesus, they were trying to encourage Thomas; but earlier, when Jesus said he was going to Jerusalem, it was Thomas who encouraged the other disciples…

And faith is like that, too; isn’t it? Some days, we’re strong in faith, and we can be a person someone else can lean on when their faith is weak; and other days, it is our own faith that is weak, and then we lean on the faith of others.

That’s one of the reasons we gather together as a church: sometimes we come, and we’re a little lost, or a little discouraged, in faith; but we come, and the faith of those around us lifts us up and helps us carry on.

It’s like when that group of friends brought a paralyzed man to Jesus, but couldn’t get in through the front door because there were so many people there; so they carried their paralyzed friend up to the roof, and dug through the roof and lowered him into the house…

And Jesus looked at them through the hole in the roof, and saw their faith, the faith of the friends… and Jesus said that it was because of their faith, the faith of the friends, that the paralyzed man was healed. 

There may come a time when my faith is weak, and yours is strong, and you can help carry me through that difficult time; and there may come a time when you’re struggling in faith, and you need my faith or the faith of your church community, to help carry you through.

That’s why it is so good that we come together for worship, why worship in the community of faith is an essential part of one’s spiritual journey.

So I’m not afraid of a little doubt. Sometimes, a little doubt can be a good thing. It helps keep us humble, and gives us the opportunity to rely on the faith of others, to lean on each other, to be a true community of faith.

And I also know that a little doubt isn’t what defines my faith. A little doubt isn’t what should define Thomas’ faith, either. Because all the disciples doubted at one time or another. And all of them were strong in faith at other times; they all became models of faith for generations of Christians to come.

Where Have They Taken Jesus? (John 20:1-18)

 Mary Magdalene went looking for Jesus. She needed to find Jesus. 

She knew he was dead. She had watched him die on the cross; watched, as his dead body was lowered from the cross, carried away, and placed in a tomb; watched, as a stone was placed over the entrance to the tomb, shortly before sunset.

She knew he was dead, but still, she had to find him.

She knew he was dead, but it was a hard thing to accept. He had done so much for her. Her life had been broken—I’m not sure why, or how, but the Bible says that she had been possessed with demons. She was tormented…until Jesus made her whole. Made her alive. Gave her a life worth living.

So she came, not even waiting for sunrise; she came while it was still dark. 

She came, looking for Jesus.

She needed to find Jesus.

But when she got to the tomb… she couldn’t find him. The stone had been removed; the body wasn’t there.

She ran to Simon Peter and the other disciple, the one whom Jesus loved… Scholars don’t know who this “one-whom-Jesus-loved” was; some think it might have been John, the author of the gospel, while others think it might have been Lazarus, over whom Jesus had once wept…

She ran to them and said: “They have taken the Lord out of the tomb, and we don’t know where they have laid him.”

These two disciples ran to the tomb, saw that it was empty, and left, confused.

But Mary stayed. She needed to find Jesus; but his body wasn’t there, and she didn’t know where to go, or where to start looking for him.

Like Mary, we come today looking for Jesus, hoping to find him, seeking his wisdom, and the life he offers. 

Like Mary, we know—or at least, we hope—that Jesus has the power to heal us and make us whole. We come, broken, disillusioned, and robbed of hope, because of all the ways this world has worked to tear us apart, to make us lose hope, to make us doubt ourselves, and doubt that we could ever, ever, be loved completely, unconditionally, just as we are. 

And yet, that is exactly what Jesus does. And that is exactly who Jesus is. 

Jesus is God’s radically inclusive love, drawing all people in, casting no one aside. Jesus is the one who overcomes all barriers, the one who knows us inside and out, and who keeps on loving us anyway. Jesus is the one who restores us to wholeness.

A man appeared in the garden. Mary thought he was the gardener. She said to him, “Sir, if you have carried him away, tell me where you have laid him…” 

All he did was speak her name. “Mary…”

And Mary knew that it was Jesus. When she heard her name, she heard the same love and affirmation that she always heard, before, whenever he’d speak her name. The way he spoke her name, she knew that he saw her—really, truly saw her, saw the person she was, saw all her failures and mistakes, but also her beauty; her beauty that was nothing less than a reflection of God’s own glory, the image of God, that is in every person.

If you come seeking Jesus, he’ll do the same for you. He’ll call your name. He’ll call you “beloved.” He’ll see who you really are, your true self. He’ll take your brokenness, he’ll take your wounds, he’ll take whatever it is that is tormenting you… and he’ll make you whole. 

He’ll see in you the image of God that is in every person, even though you might not see that image in yourself.

He’ll let you know that whatever you’ve been through, and whatever others may have said about you, will never change the fact that you are a beloved child of God, precious and beautiful in God’s sight.

When I was a substitute teacher, I encountered many students who could not see how holy, how precious, they were. They could not see the beauty within.

They had been torn up and beaten down by the sometimes cruel social structure of the classroom and playground. They had been made to carry burdens far too heavy for their young shoulders. They had come from broken families, and had been made to feel broken themselves.

And even though I never mentioned God or Jesus to them, I realized that it was my task—perhaps my most important task—to help them see the beauty within, to know that they are worthy of love and acceptance. Because that, I knew, would make a world of difference.

And in that way, even though I never mentioned God or Jesus, I made God and Jesus visible in their lives. I helped them find Jesus.

Sometimes, we in the church do mention God and Jesus, yet fail to manifest the love and affirmation that Jesus demonstrated with Mary Magdalene and with everyone he encountered. Instead of that love and affirmation that makes people whole, we speak words of judgment and condemnation; we threaten people with punishment and eternal damnation, even though people are already tormented and torn apart and carrying heavy burdens in this life. 

And I can only wonder that, as people listen to us talk about Jesus, they can’t find him. They need to find Jesus, they need to be made whole, just as Mary Magdalene needed to find Jesus, and needed to be made whole, but even though we keep talking to them about Jesus, Jesus himself is not to be found.

And they wonder where we have taken him.

Because the Jesus that was being described to them does not resemble the Jesus of hope, of life, of love, that they so desperately need. 

As Jonathan Wilson-Hartgrove asks in his book, Reconstructing the Gospel:  “What happens when, like Mary… you realize they’ve taken away your Jesus and you don’t know where they’ve laid him?”

Frederick Douglass, a former slave in the time of Lincoln, went to the church looking for Jesus, but was disappointed that Jesus could not be found there. Douglass said that he went to the church looking for “the pure, peaceable, and impartial Christianity of Christ,” but when he got to the church, he found only a “corrupt, slave-holding, women-whipping, cradle-plundering, partial and hypocritical Christianity.”

The church had taken Jesus away, and he didn’t know where they had laid him.

Gandhi, though not a Christian, was inspired by Jesus. Gandhi’s philosophy of Satyagraha was inspired by Jesus’ Sermon on the Mount. But Gandhi had a hard time finding this Jesus in the church. “I like your Christ,” he once said; “But I do not like your Christians. Your Christians are so unlike your Christ.”

The church had taken Jesus away, and he didn’t know where they had laid him.

Lisa Sharon Harper is an African-American theologian who wrote one of my favorite books, titled: The Very Good Gospel. Much of her personal life as well as her professional life has been spent looking for Jesus.

And she, too, has had a hard time finding Jesus in the church.

She points out that the message of the gospel, the message of Easter is good news. By definition, it is good news! Yet, she asks: where was the message of good news for the indigenous people of this country who were forcibly removed from their homelands? And, she asks, where was the good news for her ancestors, who were enslaved in South Carolina?

Lisa Sharon Harper writes that the message of the church to so many people throughout history did not have any good news in it for far too many people…

And a church that doesn’t have any good news doesn’t have Jesus.

The church had taken Jesus away, and she didn’t know where they had laid him.

There is so much that keeps Jesus hidden away in this world…There’s so much judgment. Condemnation. Hypocrisy. Politics. Nationalism. Scandal. Racism. Sexism. Homophobia. Transphobia. Greed. And tearing each other apart.

And what a shame it is, when these things appear in the church, and work to keep Jesus hidden away, in the one place where people expect to find Jesus…

We at First Christian Church are working hard to remove such things from God’s church. Because every person deserves to experience the same love and affirmation that Mary Magdalene experienced from Jesus. Every person deserves to find Jesus, to see the risen Lord, and experience his presence in their life, to know his love, and to experience that affirmation.

It really does make a difference, to know that God loves you and that God affirms you. To be made whole in this way is to have your life saved. 

That is my prayer for Tara, Caden, Jeremiah, and for every one of you here today on this Easter Sunday, including those of you worshiping with us online: that you are able to find Jesus, experience Jesus; that the risen Lord is revealed to you, and not kept hidden away; that you come to know God’s love that is for you.

Jesus sees you the same way he saw Mary Magdalene. Jesus calls you by name, and says your name with love. Jesus knows you as who you really are: God’s beloved child, precious and beautiful in God’s sight. 

When God created you, God pronounced you very good, and Jesus sees this goodness in you just as he saw it in Mary, even if you don’t see it yourself.

And together, our task, as the church, is to see God’s goodness in one another, and in our neighbors; and to make Jesus known, to not keep him hidden away, but to make known his love and the life he gives to each and every person.

And we’ll continue our work until every person sees their own God-given goodness, and until every person experiences God’s love, and until every person is made whole by the amazing love of our risen Lord.