As I’ve said before, and as we all know, the context of our scriptures is as important as the content of our scriptures. Especially in the Gospels, when the evangelist tells us the setting of an event, we can do ourselves a favour by paying attention to it.
Today, for example, the passage starts by telling us that the Festival of the Dedication was taking place.
Great!
This is important for us: not just because we hear that it was winter, and Jesus was in the Temple in Jerusalem – specifically in Solomon’s portico.
So why is this important to the conversation that’s about to happen?
Well.
The feast itself: the Festival of the Dedication: it happens in winter, and we usually hear about it by its Hebrew name: Hannukah. The festival of lights: a celebration that re-affirms the ideals of the faith, and offers special commemoration of the re-dedication of the Second Temple in Jerusalem. Each of the 8 days of the festival is marked with prayer and lighting of candles: the light in the world increases.
So: folks were celebratory, and they were focusing on faith.
And: Jesus is in the Portico of Solomon, which was a porch area built on the eastern side of the Temple. Solomon, son of David, was the famed King of Israel, whose rule included the building of the first Temple, and he eternally dedicated that space to the worship of God.
Sitting on the eastern side, so all the symbolism of East remain as well: the east is where the sun rises, where the light comes from. It’s why our churches are constructed with the altar facing the east: to face the sun – and the Son.
A further note, according to the first century historian Josephus: the eastern wall was an important reality to the construction of that site – even after the destruction of the Temple by the Romans in 70AD, when King Herod constructed his own edifice on the site of the razed Temple, he maintained the eastern wall in the precise location and dimension – though the rest of the new building had entirely different specs.
And all of this was known by John prior to his writing his Gospel for the world to benefit from.
Context matters: it enhances our learning.
And today’s context is that of faith:
A faith that was being celebrated in the timing of the festival;
A faith that was revered in the overall setting of the Temple, and the specific location in the portico.
A faith that was enhanced by the nuance of history that the people would have recognised by this.
And despite all this: the people question Jesus.
Tell us plainly: Are you the Messiah?
Ooof.
I can imagine Jesus trying to be patient, and compassionate, while he recognised that these folks were still struggling with the very basics of faith.
They were trying to KNOW.
And that’s not what faith is.
Faith is leaning into the mystery; it’s embracing the unknown, it’s delighting in the amazing truth of God.
If we try to KNOW everything, we are trying to limit the movement of the Spirit.
Father Richard Rohr said this in a recent podcast interview:
“Many religious folks insist on answers that are always true. We love closure, resolution, and clarity, while thinking that we are people of faith. How strange that the very word faith has come to mean its exact opposite.”
It’s worth noting that Fr. Rohr could be speaking about us today; he could also be speaking about the people gathered around Jesus some 2000 years ago.
As Jesus is inviting them – and us - to a deeper faith.
A deeper acceptance of the unknown; not a blind faith, but an informed and spirit-led connection based on knowledge and experience, reason and tradition. A relationship of trust.
Because Jesus is speaking – then and now – to people who want to believe – but who will continue to ask questions.
Now, to be clear, Jesus is fine with questions. God invites us to ask questions; to do our best to understand not just what it means to be God’s people, but how we can apply that in our lives. Our baptismal prayer invokes an inquiring and discerning heart.
And with that heart of faith, we discern how we can perceive the ideal of a faith-filled life and engage in the practices of a spiritual presence and ministry.
And those themes – of ideals and action – are actually present with us throughout this Easter season:
In the readings that supplement and compliment the Gospel, our Easter lectionary directs our attention to passages from the Acts of the Apostles, and from the Revelation to John (different John from the Gospeler, by the way. John was a popular name then as well.)
In the Revelation, we are gifted with a vision of the ideal – the new Jerusalem; the city of God. In today’s passage we hear of the gathering of the community being one of inclusion and praise and worship. It is a celebration of faith that we can all aspire to – where we come together and keep our focus on God, learning from one another, helping each other, being part of the family of God. For we are assured that the people of faith are worthy to be gathered together in the presence of God.
The Revelation is definitely what we aspire to: and what we are invited to work towards while we are in the here and the now: to bring this idyllic reality of God’s Kingdom into our earthly reality of today: how we treat one another and the whole of God’s creation: this is what Hope looks like.
And in the Acts of the Apostles, we are gifted with the real ministry of the people of the Way – the followers of Jesus. They are the folks who go out and do their best to do their best. Sometimes it works well and they can convey the power of God – like in today’s scripture as Peter and Tabitha interact. A private encounter, a renewal of life that has echoes of Jesus’ own ministry, an encouragement that with God nothing is impossible.
And the Acts also tell us of those times when things don’t always go how we expect or plan, but throughout, God’s will is done. It can be quite liberating and encouraging to have this focus as well, as we all engage the work of God through processes of trial and error – and trial and success. Through The Acts of the Apostles, God’s people bring the message of optimism, empowerment, and faith. We don’t have to get it right all the time: God does that. But we are encouraged to try:
Because we have faith.
So in Easter it’s good for us to be re-dedicating ourselves to live as people of faith.
Because we all have those moments when the ideals and the actions don’t line up; when we fall into doubt or apathy; when we would be the folks saying to the person of Jesus “Just tell me plainly.”
Yet through it all, we move to the voice that speaks to our hearts: to the core of our beings. The voice that calls our spirit home: the voice that reminds us that we are already part of the family, that we belong, and are wanted.
It’s the voice of the Shepherd; a whisper from the Spirit, a word from the Risen Word:
The voice that lifts us up when we are down, that encourages us, that empowers us, that awaits our contributions to the whole: and that celebrates our collaborative journey.
It’s the voice that reminds us that we have seen enough to believe; to hope, to try.
It’s the voice that calls us to faith.
So let us hear anew the Easter message of love and life; of mission and ministry; of ideals and actions:
The Easter message entirely of faith.
Let us dedicate ourselves to the life of faith: and be rewarded as we share the Good News of God.
Amen.
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