Read the Lectionary Texts

“What is this world coming to?”

That’s a question frequently found on the lips of people these days. For some of us, it’s a very personal question as we awaken to the aches and pains of aging and need what seems like an hour to roll out of bed in the morning. Once upon a time, we were “up and at ‘em” at the crack of dawn, but now we are just full of cracks and creaking joints that make us wonder, “What is this world coming to?”

For others, it’s the experience of significant life-changes like marriage, or divorce, or having children, or moving from Michigan to Tennessee, or losing a job, or facing a serious illness. “What is this world coming to?”

For the city of West, Texas- just outside of Waco – the explosion at a fertilizer plant left 12 firefighters dead and a large portion of the town destroyed. Tragedies like this cause people to ask, “What is this world coming to?”

And then there is the overall state of the world today.

“What IS this world coming to?”

The world in which we live is in a constant state of flux, always changing and becoming things it wasn’t yesterday. Someone – longing for the days of yesteryear – recently said what we need today is more Andy Griffith and less everything else on TV. Most of us agree! But the world of Mayberry is not the world we live in today. The world has changed, just like it always changes.

Just like it changed for the followers of Jesus.

There they were, basking in the great success of the Gospel.

And then Jesus was murdered.

There they were in the joyful days of the resurrection.

And then Jesus went away.

“What is the world coming to?” they surely wondered.

One of the reasons I’m a Christian is because this question is not left unanswered by our faith. God knows that people see all the changes going on around us and we easily become afraid of what will come next. A few days ago I asked a friend who has had a health problem how he’s doing. He said, “Well, I’m above ground and on the right side of the grass.” I said, “I’m glad to hear that.” He said, “Yeah. Me too. Beats the alternative.”

Hmmm. The alternative. I’m afraid many of us hold that view – that where we are now – as bad as it may be – has to be  better than where we’ll be tomorrow – that the world that is coming will be less than the world that we have right now.

But Christianity says, “Not true!”

Everything Jesus taught was aimed at creating a future that is bright and beautiful. Even in the days of the most severe persecution of Christians under the Roman government, Christian leaders held up the vision of a better world coming.

What IS the world coming to?

Listen to what one of them wrote:

“And then I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away, and there was no longer any sea. I saw the Holy City, the new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride for her husband. And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, ‘Now the dwelling of God is with the people and he will live with them. They will be his people, and God himself will be with them and be their God. He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain for the old order of things has passed away.’ Then he who was seated on the throne said, ‘Behold, I am making everything new!’”

That’s what the world is coming to, according to Jesus.

And notice, if you will, that this new world is not located somewhere “up there”. There is nothing in the description of this world that sounds like people playing harps, or bouncing on clouds, or not being permitted to drink beer. Heaven forbid!

The new world that is coming is THIS world – transformed into the most wonderful world you can imagine! I want you to catch that thought – of THIS world – YOUR world – OUR world – becoming a beautiful NEW world.

My good friend and church member Donn S. recently passed along to me a little essay written by his dad. Donn’s dad is 104 years old! Lives over at the Neighborhood. And Donn says his dad knows he’s nearing the end of his life. So he’s been thinking about heaven and this is what he wrote:

“I sometimes wonder what heaven must be like. I hope there will be dogs there, like Mopsy, the best family dog ever! But I know some people don’t like dogs.

I wonder if there will be honeybees in heaven, but it won’t be much heaven to some folks who don’t like bees or are allergic. I raised honey bees for years and they paid my way through Michigan State…

I look forward to both dogs and honey bees.

Could heaven be a place where we are placed on a shelf to just dream of the good times we had on earth? I think not. Could heaven be a place where there is no work? I think not. I like to work and have enjoyed many different jobs.

What kind of place must heaven be? No need to work because everything is done for us? And no suffering? Work and suffering help us to appreciate the good life here on earth.

Still, I keep wondering. Streets of gold? I hope not because I have enjoyed chipping flecks of gold out of rocks found in the mountains. Mansions? I don’t need a mansion to be happy – just a small house would be fine with me. Do we just fly around – anywhere we want to go? I think not because the struggle of going places by walking, or in cars or airplanes are wonderful in themselves.

Could heaven be a place where everything is given to us? That cannot be, because as we go without, we can appreciate what we have.

I would like to think of heaven as a continuation of life as we know it here on earth – only more wonderful – where everyone obeys the Ten Commandments and follows the Golden Rule. I look forward to new discoveries, like a wonderful sunrise – and our past must be like a beautiful sunset.”

Donn will read this as a eulogy when his dad passes away. In the meantime, may it be our prayer for the world that is coming.

The world Jesus taught us about.

Have you ever noticed that the way Jesus lived – and most especially the way Jesus loved people – was sort of an introduction to the new world of Revelation 21? It was as if – as people wondered “What is the world coming to?” – Jesus replied, “Welcome to MY world.”

And what a beautiful world it is!

Jesus accepted people the world rejected. Jesus forgave sinful people their sin, and set them free to start all over again. Jesus worked hard to make well and heal the brokenness people experienced – from things as small as a fever to things as big as chronic illness and even death. Jesus welcomed strangers, and appreciated those no one else appreciated, and included people who were usually excluded, and Jesus lifted and built up people who life had trampled down. Jesus introduced people to a God who is gracious, merciful and always loving, who is WITH us in every situation, and who is ON OUR SIDE as we face the challenges of life, and whose love will never let us go – no matter what. And Jesus paid it all. He gave everything he owned, everything he possessed, everything he valued including his blood and his life to make it possible for people to experience this new God-filled world.

Welcome to my world!

THIS world – in the process of being transformed into God’s new hope-filled world!

The other day I was browsing through some pictures I’ve uploaded to my Facebook page. And there it was – photograph of our Old Green Sears Water Tank. For those of you who don’t know, the Old Green Sears Water Tank is what provided our camp in New Hampshire with fresh clean artesian well water. It came with the house and served us well for many years – about 25 years, I think – until one day we noticed a leak. There was a hole in the tank. I was all ready to get in the car and drive to Concord to buy a new tank when my old friend Bud showed up. Now Bud was a guy who could fix anything, and when I told him the Old Green Sears Water Tank had a leak and I was going to go buy a new one, he sort of scoffed at me.

“Why don’t you just fix it?” he asked.

“I wouldn’t even know where to begin,” I said.

“Got any screws?” Bud asked.

“Yeah, of course I have screws.” I replied.

“Well, get one!” Bud said, “Get one that’s bigger than the leak hole and screw it in!”

So I found a screw bigger than the leak hole, and screwed it in. And lo and behold, it WORKED!

Well, I came home from vacation that summer and told our congregation about this amazing work of healing that had occurred with the Old Green Sears Water Tank. But there were doubters in the crowd. You know, we have a few engineers in this church, and some chemists, and some people who just know-it-all. And they all said, “It’s not gonna last! You can’t screw a steel screw into an aluminum tank. It will cause a corrosive chemical reaction and you’ll just get more leaks!”

Well, THAT was a discouraging word! So I called Bud on the phone. “Bud,” I said, “the geniuses in my church are saying you can’t put steel screws into aluminum tanks. It’ll just cause more leaks.”

Bud replied, “Buy more screws!”

And so we did! I don’t know how many screws we ended up putting into that tank, but it lasted another ten years or so. And after a long rich life, the Old Green Sears Water Tank finally succumbed to a burst aneurysm or something and blew a hole in itself far too big for a screw to fix. And so we had to lay it to rest, and we celebrated its long life, and we cherished the memories of all the leaks, and all the screws, and all the toilet flushes, and all the showers – and most especially all the precious moments God gave us with our dear friend Gordon “Bud” Shaftoe who has since gone home to be with the Lord.

Bud taught me a lot about HOPE. If there’s a problem, don’t give in to it. Work hard to solve it! If there’s a mountain you’re facing, don’t run away. Climb it! If you’re carrying a burden, find the strength to bear it! If there is something broken in your life, don’t give up – find a screw bigger than the hole and fix it!

Because, you see, this is GOD’S world. And in God’s world there is healing and hope and peace to be found.

That’s right – right HERE!

Welcome to God’s world.

Jesus taught us how this new world can come to us, and how we can bring this new world to others. Just before he was betrayed and killed he said, “A new command I give you: love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another.”

How did Jesus love?

I think love is about giving people hope – standing in the middle of the world as it is, and pointing to and representing the new world that is here already, and will extend into eternity. Love is helping people find hope!

“As I have loved you, so you must love one another.”

Welcome, to God’s world!