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Friday, December 14, 2012

Its the end of the world as we know it...


Holden Village
11.18.12
Mark 13:1-8

December 21, 2012this is the date the world will end, again. Just in case you havent heard the Mayan calendar ends on December 21, 2012 with the winter solstice, so much of the world has come to the natural conclusion that the world will cease to exist when this calendar reaches its end. The tourism of Guatalmaa is taking hold of this so-called doomsday and turning quite a profit by selling tickets to see the ruins and offering D-day survival kits. Of course this is not the first, or second or even hundredth time the world has been predicted to be at its end. And somehow here we are still kicking and the earth keeps revolving and life as we know it continues on.

There is plenty of biblical literature that encourages these kind of end times speculation. All of our readings tonight point us in the direction of the great unknown and all that will lead up to it. And so, by human nature we are prone to want the details, we want to know when, where, how and who will be there on the other side of it all.When will this be and what will be the sign that all these things are about to be accomplished?The disciples threw this question back at Jesusjust like us, they want to know when and how. Of course, those details are slow in coming, we've been waiting around for thousands of years since these words were written and while we wait there are guesses made, assumptions jumped to and we try to fit the end times into a frame we can see clearlywe try to package the apocalypse nice and neat and stick a date on it, December 21, 2012. Done.

When we cannot control we grab harder to reigns that are flying out of our hands. When we are afraid we cling to notions and ideas that bring a false sense of security until we feel brave again. When we do not have the knowledge we answer anyways with facts and hopes that are grabbed out of the sky. And there is nothing like the end of something to bring out our control issues, our fear, our questions. The end of a job, the end of a relationship, the end of dream, the end of a life, the end of our world as we live in it todaycue the control, the fear, the questions that assail us.

Maybe it is human nature, maybe it is the biblical literature, maybe its just such a frightening and compelling notion we cannot help but play with it. Whatever the motivation our culture as quite a fascination with end timesApocalypse Now, Armageddon, WALL-E, The Left Behind Series or Late Great Planet Earth and this barely scratches the surface of all the words, images and stories that have been created to capture one idea of the apocalypse or another. Many a producer has profited off our fascination with all we do not know.

We do not have the thrill of Hollywood tonight and a sci-fi author I am not. What we do have are these challenging texts and a brave community of faith where we can wrestle with these words togetherwe will not end with neat and tidy answers, but maybe rely on our faith which is strong together than alone.

After yesterday's bible and brew I was asked the question,Do you really believe in the apocalypse?I have no grand theological response to such a question, but I have some statements of faith instead. I believe that this world as we know it falls short, very very short of all the dreams God has for it. I believe that we as people, that I as a daughter of God fall short of all the dreams God has for me and my life, too. And so the idea that a great new day could be promised to us, a day when death is no more and tears and pain and crying is no morewell that great new day is something I hold on to to continue in this life. I cannot and will not justify all the suffering and injustice of our world and of my own lifebut if apocalypse could mean a world as God intended, a world that lives up to all the potential and life abundant that is promised through Jesus Christthen yes, I believe. And still, even in this belief, many questions remain also.

The disciples wanted details, that human nature kicking in and demanding to know the when and the how of the end times. Jesus does not answer with a date on a calendar, instead he replies, Beware that no one leads you astray...when you hear of wars and rumors of wars, do not be alarmed; this must take place, but the end is still to come. For nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom; there will be earthquakes in various places; there will be famines...Jesus is describing the time the disciples are living in with the conflict between Jews and Romans and Jesus is describing the time which follows with the early church under great oppression and false messiahs popping up all over the place. Jesus is also describing most eras between his day and oursdishonest rulers, wars, natural disasters, inexcusable hungerhe could be reading right off the CNN website. The suffering of the end times were happening that day when Jesus spoke those words, they were happening that day when the gospel of Mark was written and they have been happening every day since.

We could, so easily, look at each block of history and point to the signs of doomsday. Evil is so blatant it is easy to spotour news sources have become fine tune machines spotlighting the darkness around us every single day. We could look for the death and destruction, the signs and the clues that might tip us off to God's timing. But this is not our calling. We will not know God's timing so let's not be distracted by it. Jesus saysbe aware and do not fear” – be aware of where God is at work giving life in the face of death, bringing peace in the face of war. Hope, justice, gracethese may not make the best headlines but they are certainly powerful forces gifted to us by God and present in the middle of suffering all over the creation.

We know this because we can look at each block of history and point to life. We can look back and see that humanity has continued through world wars and disease, we can look back and notice that the church continues in its own clumsy way to proclaim the love of God through Jesus and to point to the work of the Spirit among us. Now, to be clear this is not an opportunity to be overly confident in our ability to survive...rather it is an opportunity to witness to the hand of God giving life and reconciliation in our apocalyptic world.

Also during our Bible and Brew conversation the people present started naming the times in history that we could point to thoseend days. One women commented that the sixties were just such a time. Because of assassinations, wars, the civil rights movement and so many other reasons that decade truly felt like and ending to life as it was known. Yet, there were people here in this country who were aleartlooking for the hand of God in troubling times, listening for the voice of God in a time when voices were mostly filled with anger and fear. And these people gently, yet persistently pushed for greater justice. These people imagined a world as God had intended, these people believed in the urging of the Spirit and demanded peace and equality for all. These people, the unsung heros of the civil rights movement, were led by Martin Luther King Jr who painted his own apocalyptic scene with these words


Something is happening in Memphis; something is happening in our world. And you know, if I were standing at the beginning of time, with the possibility of taking a kind of general and panoramic view of the whole of human history up to now, and the Almighty said to me, "Martin Luther King, which age would you like to live in?" I would take my mental flight by Egypt and I would watch God's children in their magnificent trek from the dark dungeons of Egypt through, or rather across the Red Sea, through the wilderness on toward the promised land. And in spite of its magnificence, I wouldn't stop there.I would even go by the way that the man for whom I am named had his habitat. And I would watch Martin Luther as he tacked his ninety-five theses on the door at the church of Wittenberg. But I wouldn't stop there.                I would come on up even to 1863, and watch a vacillating President by the name of Abraham Lincoln finally come to the conclusion that he had to sign the Emancipation Proclamation. But I wouldn't stop there.I would even come up to the early thirties, and see a man grappling with the problems of the bankruptcy of his nation. And come with an eloquent cry that we have nothing to fear but "fear itself." But I wouldn't stop there.  I would move on by Greece and take my mind to Mount Olympus. And I would see Plato, Aristotle, Socrates, Euripides and Aristophanes assembled around the Parthenon. And I would watch them around the Parthenon as they discussed the great and eternal issues of reality. But I wouldn't stop there.
Strangely enough, I would turn to the Almighty, and say, "If you allow me to live just a few years in the second half of the 20th century, I will be happy."
Now that's a strange statement to make, because the world is all messed up. The nation is sick. Trouble is in the land; confusion all around. That's a strange statement. But I know, somehow, that only when it is dark enough can you see the stars. And I see God working in this period of the twentieth century in a way that men, in some strange way, are responding.Something is happening in our world. The masses of people are rising up. And wherever they are assembled today, whether they are in Johannesburg, South Africa; Nairobi, Kenya; Accra, Ghana; New York City; Atlanta, Georgia; Jackson, Mississippi; or Memphis, Tennessee -- the cry is always the same: "We want to be free."Well, I don't know what will happen now. We've got some difficult days ahead. But it really doesn't matter with me now, because I've been to the mountaintop.

And I don't mind.

Like anybody, I would like to live a long life. Longevity has its place. But I'm not concerned about that now. I just want to do God's will. And He's allowed me to go up to the mountain. And I've looked over. And I've seen the Promised Land. I may not get there with you. But I want you to know tonight, that we, as a people, will get to the promised land!

And so I'm happy, tonight.I'm not worried about anything.I'm not fearing any man!Mine eyes have seen the glory of the coming of the Lord. (from Letter from Birmingham Jail)

So, let December 21, 2012 come. I imagine it will be a day of death and suffering, of wars and rumors of wars...and I believe it will also be a day of life, new beginnings, forgiveness, swells of peace and an ever present Spirit urging us towards the great day of life for all. Amen.

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