May 6th, th Sunday of Easter Readings: Acts 8:26-40; John 15:1-8

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1 1 May 6 th, th Sunday of Easter Readings: Acts 8:26-40; John 15: Then an angel of the Lord said to Philip, "Get up and go toward the south to the road that goes down from Jerusalem to Gaza." (This is a wilderness road.) 27 So he got up and went. Now there was an Ethiopian eunuch, a court official of the Candace, queen of the Ethiopians, in charge of her entire treasury. He had come to Jerusalem to worship 28 and was returning home; seated in his chariot, he was reading the prophet Isaiah. 29 Then the Spirit said to Philip, "Go over to this chariot and join it." 30 So Philip ran up to it and heard him reading the prophet Isaiah. He asked, "Do you understand what you are reading?" 31 He replied, "How can I, unless someone guides me?" And he invited Philip to get in and sit beside him. 32 Now the passage of the scripture that he was reading was this: "Like a sheep he was led to the slaughter, and like a lamb silent before its shearer, so he does not open his mouth. 33 In his humiliation justice was denied him. Who can describe his generation? For his life is taken away from the earth." 34 The eunuch asked Philip, "About whom, may I ask you, does the prophet say this, about himself or about someone else?" 35 Then Philip began to speak, and starting with this scripture, he proclaimed to him the good news about Jesus. 36 As they were going along the road, they came to some water; and the eunuch said, "Look, here is water! What is to prevent me from being baptized?" He commanded the chariot to stop, and both of them, Philip and the eunuch, went down into the water, and Philip baptized him. 39 When they came up out of the water, the Spirit of the Lord snatched Philip away; the eunuch saw him no more, and went on his way rejoicing. 40 But Philip found himself at Azotus, and as he was passing through the region, he proclaimed the good news to all the towns until he came to Caesarea. 1 "I am the true vine, and my Father is the vinegrower. 2 He removes every branch in me that bears no fruit. Every branch that bears fruit he prunes to make it bear more fruit. 3 You have already been cleansed by the word that I have spoken to you. 4 Abide in me as I abide in you. Just as the branch cannot bear fruit by itself unless it abides in the vine, neither can you unless you abide in me. 5 I am the vine, you are the branches. Those who abide in me and I in them bear much fruit, because apart from me you can do nothing. 6 Whoever does not abide in me is thrown away like a branch and withers; such branches are gathered, thrown into the fire, and burned. 7 If you abide in me, and my words abide in you, ask for whatever you wish, and it will be done for you. 8 My Father is glorified by this, that you bear much fruit and become my disciples.

2 2 There was a Knicks fan with nosebleed seat in Madison Square Garden. Looking around, he spotted an empty seat courtside. So, he made his way down to the empty seat. When he arrived at the seat, he asked the man sitting next to it, "Is this seat taken?" The man replied, "This was my wife's seat. She passed away. She was a big basketball fan." "I'm so sorry to hear of your loss. May I ask why you didn't give the ticket to a friend or a relative?" "They're all at the funeral." I thought a basketball joke might be appropriate as the NBA s playoffs are well underway by now. I m actually a pretty big basketball fan (not quite as big as baseball of course!) but I have to say I haven t really been into the NBA this year. Like many fans, I m often disenfranchised with the state of the game today: professional athletes may have extraordinary talent, but it is too often exceeded by the extraordinary egos that go with it. Take, for example, Lebron James, arguably the game s best player these days. [slide 2] This ad adorned the building adjacent to the downtown arena the Cleveland Cavaliers, Lebron James first pro team. I remember seeing it a few years ago when I visited Cleveland in the very summer that Lebron decided to take his talents to South Beach, Miami. In an instant those that had adored the Chosen One and his basketball abilities turned on him for his betrayal. He chose to make his announcement on a television special rubbing salt in the wounds of those that had cheered him on for years. James is typical of many athletes these days that seem to care more about themselves and their brand than the sport and fans. To the power of greed and human selfishness, we are truly all witnesses. But might there be something other we are also witness to? Something bigger than a 6 8 basketball player something bigger than a billboard? What are you a witness to?

3 3 [slide 3] Throughout the Easter Season we ve been reading accounts of the Early Church s witness. Peter gets up in front of a hostile audience and is able to proclaim Christ s suffering, death, and resurrection to this, we are all witnesses he affirms. In fact, throughout the NT we find the threads of the gospel: that Jesus suffered, died, was raised on the third day, and there are witnesses. We hear in the gospels the appearances of the risen Christ to the Mary s at the empty tomb, to the disciples locked in the upper room, to his followers on the road to Emmaus. And Jesus disciples are emphatic in their claim that they themselves have witnessed the resurrected Christ. [slide 4] Philip, a lesser-known disciple of Christ, is doing just that in the story we heard from the Acts of the Apostles this morning. It is a fascinating account of an outsider, the Ethiopian, journeying to Jerusalem to worship the Jewish God, only to discover on his way home that his faith only made sense through the lens of Christ. Philip runs alongside his chariot, hops on board, and explains that the prophetic texts are speaking of the Christ, the Messiah, as one who suffers, dies, and rises from the dead. And Philip himself has witnessed these things! The Ethiopian is so moved he insists on being baptized into this resurrected Christ s life immediately. They stop at the side of the rode, and he and Philip carry out this ritual symbolizing the pattern of Jesus Passion and Resurrection. He is buried with Christ as he is immersed; he rises with Jesus as he emerges from the water. It s a powerful story. Throughout the narrative there is the impulse of the Holy Spirit driving Philip on leading him to the Ethiopian, rushing him off immediately after the baptism to witness to the gospel to all in Caesarea. The seeker, the Ethiopian, has his eyes opened to the Scriptures in a new way and he is moved to become a follower of Christ. Ever wonder, why? [slide] Why would this man, why did so many others, commit themselves to following in the footsteps of Christ? Why convert? Converting, switching religions/ allegiances, was risky business. It could mean excommunication, estrangement, and even persecution. How could people like Philip convince others to follow in the footsteps of a martyr? What was so great about the Early Church s witness that led to so many people joining the Church? The fundamental theological reality of this situation is that it was the Spirit of God that opened the eyes of the Ethiopian. God orchestrated the entire situation from leading Philip to the man (as the angel of the Lord appeared to him and told him to rise up and go ), to directing their conversation, to his Presence in the baptism.

4 4 But I think it s important to note that one of the most powerful ways the Spirit speaks through some in order to minister to others, is by using that person s personal testimony. That is, what was it about Philip s life that might ve struck someone like the man in our story? My sense is that Philip was living proof of the transformative power of God. Think about it: these disciples were quivering cowards just days earlier. They were completely grief-stricken and destitute. They d lost their leader. Their dreams were shattered, their spirits, crushed. But now, now they are different. Now they preach with courage and conviction. Now they are passionate about their faith, convinced that their Saviour lives! And they are so convincing that they are able to convince others of this same reality. In truth, they have been able to find the presence of God, in the risen Jesus, in the context of their grief and suffering. And finding God has brought them healing and hope, and an energy to share that hope with others. Their witness has a greater effectiveness because their faith has cost them something, everything in fact. They went through the torment of seeing their Lord butchered; they anguished in fear and doubt after his death. But Christ s resurrection not only redeemed his own suffering, it also redeemed the suffering of his friends. It all makes sense now, Jesus HAD to suffer and die in order to take on the sin of the world. Easter only makes sense in light of Good Friday, and vice versa. [slide] Finding God s presence in the midst of great suffering may be the greatest witness we can ever have. Those attentive to mission trends will tell you that the places where the Church sees the most growth tends to be in areas of great suffering. Sometimes it s a result of persecution, as in the Church s early years, other times it s in war-torn and impoverished regions where faith is shared openly and with conviction. I believe it s because the best witness grows out of grief. The difference God makes in our lives is most apparent when life gets difficult. Apparent not only to ourselves, but to those watching us. Jesus teaches us that life with him isn t easy. In our gospel he is sharing a farewell discourse with his disciples and uses the image of the vine and the branches to teach them about the necessity of staying connected with him. There are times of pruning, and times of growth. Times of pain and times of celebration. The key is being able to recognize God s presence throughout both. Abide in me Jesus says live with him. Open your eyes to see Christ living in you. Recognize God s presence with you, especially in the places of pain.

5 5 Can you find God in the dark? Do your own struggles cause you to dig deeper? Do you realize that you are being watched? We are all Witnesses. To whom are you witnessing?