Meditations in Black and White - DMin Jeffery B. Hampton

Meditations in Black and White (eBook)

Beyond the Comfort Zone

DMin Jeffery B. Hampton (Autor)

eBook Download: EPUB

2024 | 1. Auflage
256 Seiten
Bookbaby (Verlag)
979-8-3509-6507-0 (ISBN)

A Bible Study for Spiritual Formation

Associate Pastor for 25 years at Pulaski Heights United Methodist Church, Little Rock, Arkansas

Meditations in Black and White: Beyond the Comfort Zone is a series of Bibically based sermons written by an African American Pastor in a predominantly white congregation. 25 years ago, Dr. Jeff Hampton had to step away from his comfort zone and learn adapt new ways of communicating the Gospel and sharing his personal Faith.

CHAPTER ELEVEN

Peace and the Holy Spirit

John 20:19-29

Many people attend Easter services but are not seen at church again until the next year. No pastor, from her or his vantage point in the pulpit, can help but ask what it is that draws so many more on that one day than on any other Sunday of the year. Are the “Easter Christians” true believers? Or are they simply observing a social custom, perhaps placating a spouse or supposing themselves to set a good example for their children? On the other hand, could it be that somehow they are drawn to an undeniable power that somehow seems more present on that Sunday? Many faithful lay members have expressed these questions to me over the years, perhaps expressing wonder that the Holy Spirit works differently in the hearts of some than themselves. The Good News is that every Sunday is a little Easter as we celebrate the resurrection power of God, who raised Jesus from the dead. Each Sunday, great worship services are available to all. The power of the Holy Spirit is available to all. To those who knock (regularly), the door (to the Spirit) will be opened.

PRAYER

GRACIOUS GOD, TODAY we give thanks for the people in our lives who ask good questions and encourage us to grow spiritually, continue to increase our faith, and reduce our doubts as we meditate on your word. Amen.

John 20:19-29 raises questions concerning Easter Sunday and the resurrection, which is sometimes difficult to comprehend. Many people believe in the resurrection and eternal life, and some people do not. You may have questions and be unclear as to what you believe or what the church teaches. It is quite common for Christian people to be at different points of understanding along our spiritual journeys of faith.

The church teaches that Easter Sunday is a celebration of the Resurrection of Jesus Christ, which is understood as God’s raising of Jesus Christ from death to life on the third day (Sunday) after his crucifixion (Acts 4:10; 5:30; & Romans 10:9). Christ is thus alive and worshiped as the risen Lord (Philippians 2:6-11), who rules the world and is present in the world and with the church (Matthew 28:20). Easter Sunday is also a celebration of the Resurrection Life, which is understood as the new existence given to those who know the power of Jesus Christ’s resurrection (Philippians 3:10), and who live in light of this reality (Westminster Dictionary of Theological Terms, Donald K. McKim, 1996).

The Good News in our text is that it is alright to doubt and question the resurrection and to doubt and question God. I believe that struggling and asking questions about the Bible, and experiencing moments of doubt, are all part of what it means to be a people of faith seeking more understanding.

Henry Drummond (a Scottish scientist and evangelist who was known as a most Christ-like man, 1851-1897) once wrote about some of the differences he noted between a doubter and an unbeliever. He wrote that a doubter is a person who searches for God and the Godly life. This is a person on a journey, a quest, a search to find God and to discover the love of God. An unbeliever isn’t searching for God so much as for situations in life that bring happiness. The doubter, wrote Drummond, is a person with a “thousand questions” about life, love, purpose, and more. But the unbeliever seemingly isn’t questioning about God, but maybe apathetic regarding God. The doubter struggles with God to live a Godly life and struggles to find the purpose of life, but this is not so with the unbeliever.

Doubts, questions, and life experiences can all deepen our faith in God as experienced through Jesus Christ. There are many good questions raised in the Bible. You may recall a man named Nicodemus who came to Jesus by night. He acknowledged that Jesus was a teacher from God, and Nicodemus sought information by asking questions to help his doubts. Jesus invited him to be born again of the water and the spirit. Another question arose in the Book of Job, chapter 14:14, by the book’s namesake; he asks, “If mortals die, will they live again? All the days of my service, I would wait until my release should come.” Then the Apostle Paul asks a great question in Romans 8:35-39, “Who will separate us from the love of Christ?” Paul concluded by saying, “I am convinced that nothing in all creation will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.” And in John 20:25, the disciple Thomas stated questioningly, “Unless I see the mark of the nails in his hands, I will not believe.”

The Gospel of John tells us that on the first Easter morning, there were questions, doubts, and believing! It was early on the first day of the week, and while it was still dark, Mary Magdalene came to the tomb and saw the stone rolled away. She ran to tell two other disciples, and they all looked into the tomb. One disciple looked and believed. Mary remained at the tomb and saw two angels; she wondered where the body of Jesus was. After talking to the angels, she turned and saw Jesus, but she believed he was the gardener. She asked a question, “Sir, if you have carried him away, tell me where you have laid him, and I will take him away.” Jesus said, “Woman, why are you weeping?” At first doubtful, Mary now believed and became the first to carry the Good News to the others. Christ Is Risen! Christ Is Risen Indeed!

On that Easter evening, John 20:19-23 says that the doors of the house where the disciples had met were locked for fear of the Jews. Jesus came and stood among them and said, “Peace be with you.” Jesus then showed them his hands, feet, and side, which were the marks that took his life, and verified that he was crucified and that he had died. After seeing the marks, the disciples rejoiced in the Lord. Jesus said to them again, “Peace be with you. As the Father has sent me, so I send you.” When he had said this, he breathed on them and said to them, “Receive the Holy Spirit. If you forgive the sins of any, they are forgiven them; if you retain the sins of any, they are retained.”

Jesus then sent the disciples out of their locked room and out into the world to serve as his witnesses.

Jesus visited the disciples to calm their fears, to refocus them on the mission of the church, and to grant them peace and the Holy Spirit. Their mission was to go into the world and make disciples through the sharing of the good news of Jesus Christ. “The Holy Spirit” is available to each and everyone and is able to assist us in any decision-making process with wisdom and power.

Peace or Shalom is a Hebrew term used for greeting and farewell with great richness of meaning. Peace or Shalom is a greeting stressing God’s presence and full societal and personal well-being, possible only as a gift of God. The Holy Spirit that Jesus breathes on the disciples is the third Person of the Trinity. God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit comprise the eternal Godhead. The Holy Spirit inspired biblical writers. The Holy Spirit makes known the saving work of Jesus Christ, and the Holy Spirit is God as present in and with the church. The Holy Spirit acts to incorporate all things into the life of the triune God (Westminster Dictionary of Theological Terms, Donald K. McKim, 1996).

Philemon 4:7 tells us that the Peace that comes from God is beyond our comprehension, yet it is ours in Christ, and it will guard our hearts and anxious minds when we remain in Christ. John 14:27 says, “Peace I leave with you, my peace I give to you: I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not let them be afraid.”

In John 20:24, we notice, first of all, that Thomas was absent from his small disciple group, and we do not know why. He missed a very important meeting. Because Thomas missed the meeting and because of his historical response to missing the meeting, he is often referred to as “doubting Thomas.” It is true that he doubted, but many have doubted the promises of God. Thomas is mentioned three times in the Gospel of John, and each time Thomas has something important to say.

In John Chapter 11, Jesus had delayed two days in checking on his beloved friend Lazarus. Some of the disciples warned Jesus by telling him that he must stay away from the tomb of Lazarus, where jealous and angry Jews were waiting to stone him. They were clearly exasperated that he was determined to go to the tomb. Thomas, who was called the Twin, said to Jesus and the other disciples in verse 16, “Let us also go, that we may die with him.” This was a brave statement by Thomas. This statement may also give us a clue as to why Thomas was not fearful and locked with the others behind doors.

The second time we hear from Thomas is in John 14. Jesus spoke to his disciples, calming them and telling them to still their minds and hearts. He admonished them to believe in God and also in himself. “In my Father’s house there are many dwelling places. If it were not so, I would have told you. I am going there to prepare a place for you…and you know the way to the place where I am going.” Thomas questioned Jesus in John 14:5, expressing the followers’ dismay, saying, in effect,...

Erscheint lt. Verlag	17.9.2024
Sprache	englisch
Themenwelt	Geisteswissenschaften ► Religion / Theologie ► Christentum
ISBN-13	979-8-3509-6507-0 / 9798350965070

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