The Peace of God
Good Friday
Christ Church, Poughkeepsie
The Rev. Richard C Witt
25 March 2005
“It is Finished”
As I
listen to the words: “It is Finished” - I don’t have a clue. As I try to grab a hold of the meaning of
these words ... to gain a picture of the moment in which they were said - I am
overwhelmed. It is like a great mystery
- something out of the DaVinci Code - to be solved and understood. The words come in the midst of one of the key
moments of our faith - and I can’t comprehend them. . . . I do however have a suspicion - not
about the answer, I am not wise enough for that, but where the answer may be
found. I have a suspicion that the
answer may be found in a blessing - a blessing that we offer every Sunday:
The Peace of God which passeth all
understanding, keep your hearts and minds in the knowledge of God.
How
strange to find myself talking about peace on Good Friday - In the moment that
he says: “It is Finished” - it is a moment of great agony … There is no peace
on Calvary.
·
Jesus
has suffered tremendously
·
the
great change he was leading as been stopped
·
he
is ridiculed
·
he
is abandoned by Peter / and he has felt abandoned by God
·
and
he says: it is finished > a great mystery
·
and
is followers are alone
It is
finished and there is no peace on Calvary
Oh how I
yearn for peace. . . .I yearn to be free of anxiety and fear. . . . And his
words aren’t giving it to me. And so my
mind, as it so often does, begins to become fearful, as I believe many of us
do. We worry: about our health, about
the future of our children; about our mortality; about whether the world will
be safe and just; about being alone.
It is
finished and there is no peace on Calvary.
There is
no peace on Calvary and for many of us - this is old news. We knew it. We saw
it coming a long time ago. Life is hopeless and we have given up. It was finished a long time ago. Whether we
be cynical or apathetic - it doesn’t matter - we have given up - and here is
the proof - he is crucified and dying
For
others, we are doing all we can to avoid Calvary. The words “It is Finished” are something to
be avoided at all costs. I am one of
these. We have an ego that believes
somehow, someway - We can make things work out. That life can ultimately be
controlled. If we work long enough, are creative enough and push hard enough -
then we will make everything right. For me
this takes place in raising children, seeking justice for farmworkers or
finding peace within my life. Of course
the reality is that we are afraid to be out of control and fearful of the
consequences. Therefore, we work hard to ensure that good will happen.
The
Peace of God Passeth All Understanding
Once,
many centuries ago, there was a Portuguese missionary who also believed this -
although whether he was into controlling and/or fearful, I cannot say. He was a man who had found Christ with all of
his heart and mind. He had turned his life over to him and let Christ lead him
where he may. And wherever he traveled he gave witness to Christ through his
life and his words. Eventually he was
led to Japan - to bring the Gospel to the Japanese. Unfortunately, this was
shortly after the powers to be had decided that they had had enough of the
missionaries and in fact Christians.
They proceeded to arrest Christians, and the missionary was also
arrested.
He was
told to renounce Christ. He
refused. As a result he was thrown in a
dungeon. In the next cell he could hear
the desperate agony of others being crucified upside down. He was told that if he renounced Christ then
they would be saved.
You can
feel the dilemma: On the one hand he
came in the tradition of generations of the faithful who had inspired future
generations on through witness and sacrifice.
Just as Christ had, through the ultimate sacrifice. If he gave in where would his witness
be? It would be merely words that easily
crumbled. On the other hand was the
priority of valuing life and saving his brothers and sisters from torture and
death. Following also in the words of Jesus who held forth the sanctity of life
- even in the face of going against the rules.
What would his words be, if they were not lived into?
As I
listened to this story the other day and struggled with it - it became clear to
me that ultimately - ultimately - we cannot create peace and that we cannot
control life - others or our own. It is
up to God to create the ultimate peace.
Yes there
was no peace on Calvary. Yes there was
no peace in that prison in Japan. There
is no peace in Iraq, or in the fields of New York’s farms. There is no peace in the mourning at a
funeral, or in the news of Cancer, or in the midst of alcoholism. There is no peace on Calvary. . . But there
is peace in the world. God’s peace. And we have felt it. And we have witnessed it. It is always there
for us. At times it escapes us. At times it seems impossible to touch, let
alone feel. Frequently it is found in
hindsight - If you don’t believe me - talk to parents after their baby
is born, or listen to the Easter story on Sunday.
And we
are the vessels of God’s peace. . . . We can nurture an appreciation for it. .
. We can honor it. . . . And give witness
to it. . . . But we will never fully understand it for the peace of God passeth
all understanding.
Now this
is good news for those of us who seek to control > we can let go
It is
also good news for those who are hopeless > we can have hope
And for
either group this is not giving up - it is giving up to > to God. And when we give it up to God, then we find
the wherewithal to live more fully into life. We find the wherewithal to let go
of the anxiety and the fear, the hopelessness and the apathy. And we find all sorts of opportunities that
would otherwise seemed impossible. We
even find the courage to face the “realities of life” In other words we find
peace.
We find
the peace that comes through
·
an
awareness that God is present
·
the
knowledge that evil will not ultimately take control
·
giving
up the angst and the psyche energy that we have to control everything
·
a
contentment that God is present
·
that
the sadness of having to make a choice to carry forth the spirit is ultimately
worth it
For in
time the peace of God is revealed.
Keep
Your Hearts and Minds in the Knowledge of God
We have
seen time and time throughout history and in our own lives a peacefulness in
the midst of turmoil, of hopelessness - even to the point of a joyful
willingness to confront death & evil.
I am convinced that it is because people have kept their hearts and
minds in the knowledge of God.
There is
a knowledge that God will present herself and the Spirit will touch > not
usually in the way we expect or even desire. Yes there are immense doubts and
even agony - but ultimately > there is a peace
Our
challenge is to keep our focus and be inspired by those who have gone before us
·
immerse
ourselves in their stories
·
that
knowledge begins with the commitment of Jesus which has been witnessed to
throughout the ages - by those who have found peace that has given them
strength
AND
ULTIMATELY THAT KNOWLEDGE RESTS IN THE KNOWLEDGE THAT PEACE IS IN GOD’S HANDS
Keep
your minds and hearts in the Love of God
On
Calvary there is no peace and yet It Is Finished: May the peace of God which passes all
understanding keep your hearts and minds in the knowledge and love of God.
Amen.