5th Sunday after Easter Sermon

Today is a day of incredibly rich texts. We hear from 1st John about love, love that conquers all, centered in a life that is full of the spirit. We love because we have been loved, we love because when we dare to love each other, we encounter the God that we cannot see. We love because God is love, God is the love that we breathe in on a bright spring morning, and the love that shelters us in the storm. And then we read the gospel of John and hear the words of Jesus reminding us just where that love comes from- a love that abides in us, not as a threat, but as a promise. God abides in us, Jesus hangs around inside of us. We cannot do anything apart from God, because God is all around us, inside each one of us, cleansing us and helping us to bear fruit.

There are so many possible sermons today that we could be here for hours, just reveling in these texts. A friend of mine tells the story that in one congregation, if the pastor got on a bit of a roll, tried to preach on everything , the congregation, instead of shouting amen, would start to shout, can’t preach it all pastor! In order to prevent your eyes from glazing over, we’re going to spend our morning carrying these rich texts from this fifth Sunday after Easter with us as we encounter the story of the Ethiopian Eunuch.

We have dropped into the book of Acts pretty far into the narrative. It is after Pentecost. The spirit of God has descended on the people, and they have received these crazy tongues of fire. They have been sent out literally burning with the Holy Spirit. And things are getting a little intense. They have been called to go and spread the gospel to the entire world, and at times that world is not prepared for the message they are bringing.

Philip and his colleagues have been preaching and teaching and doing some miracles. They have been waiting tables and feeding people, and the spirit of God has been moving. But there is severe persecution of this budding church. Only a chapter earlier in the book of Acts, Stephen, a contemporary of Philip and another apostle has been stoned to death because of his words. Saul who will soon encounter God on his journey has not yet been renamed Paul and seeks to kill and destroy the church and all who profess to be Christians.

It isn’t a safe time, but the spirit continues to push these apostles out into the world to spread the news. Philip has been sent to Samaria, and we all remember stories of those low-down, no good Samaritans. It was a Samaritan woman that met Jesus in the heat of the day at the well, it was a Samaritan man who unexpectedly stopped to help the one left beaten on the side of the road. Not much was expected of Samaritans, and to imagine that Samaritans would become believers was almost like a pipe dream.

And yet it happens in the book of Acts. Philip’s preaching has people falling on their knees, demons running for the hills, the paralyzed walking and the sick leaping for joy at their cure. He is, without a doubt, rocking the pulpit. You might want to consider him the Billy Graham of his generation. People know his name, they flock to him in order to see miraculous signs and hear amazing preaching. People were receiving the spirit left and right.

Yet then we hear that in a dream, God tells Philip to leave Samaria. He is to go south, on a wilderness road. It is important to note here that whenever you see the word wilderness in our biblical text it usually designates a place you don’t want to be. The wilderness is usually a place of desolation, a place of temptation, a place full of danger and uncertainty. Our famous preacher has a dream, and in that dream he is sent out on a road of danger and desolation. Had it been you or me, I imagine we might have had something to say about such a call. People in Samaria are converting like crazy, Philip is growing in fame and reputation, and if I were him, I’d really be into staying put. But Philip doesn’t even appear to bat an eye, just packs his things and heads out to where God is calling him. Perhaps he had heard that passage from John- knew without God he couldn’t do anything and so he was ready to follow God’s lead and not his own. Perhaps he had heard about Jesus being the vine, pruning him, abiding with him in order that he might bear good fruit. Philip was preaching, teaching and doing miracles, but it appears that he knew better than most of us- he knew that this life he was leading wasn’t going to lead up to much unless he kept listening and doing the work of God.

So here we are, with famous preacher Philip on a wilderness road in the middle of the day. And suddenly a chariot comes by. Inside it is an Ethiopian eunuch. He is reading the scripture, something usually done aloud, and Philip hears him. This is the wilderness road moment, it is the moment when being called makes sense, as that chariot rolls by, and Philip hears the book of Isaiah being read, it all comes together. He is here for this very reason, and without pausing for a breath, Philip is at the door of that chariot and asking that Ethiopian if he understands what he is reading.

“How can I, unless someone guides me?” he says. And now, let’s pause here for a minute. We have Philip, super preacher extraordinaire, on a wilderness road and now inside the chariot of this Ethiopian eunuch. We have an Ethiopian Eunuch who is a treasurer of the queen, considered only half a man and not allowed into the temple because of his disability. He’s reading scripture, but he is not sure he understands what he is reading. They talk, Philip sharing the stories of Jesus Christ, the eunuch asking the questions no one has answered for him before.
And here is the most amazing part of the story. On that journey, as they talk and ask questions, as the spirit moves between them, on that dry, desolate wilderness road, they come upon a pool of water. The chariot stops. The eunuch looks at Philip and says, “what is to keep me from being baptized?”

This is the million dollar question for that eunuch on the road, and for us gathered today. Just last week we celebrated four baptisms. In the coming weeks we will celebrate even more, as we rejoice with families in this congregation who are ready to make promises to their children around our life together. They are going to bring those babies and toddlers to the waters of baptism- and the question we have to ask is, “what is to keep them from being baptized?”
For that travelling eunuch we know what was to keep him out of those waters. He wasn’t even allowed in the temple because the world considered him a half man. He wasn’t from Jerusalem, wasn’t even a Jew by birth. He didn’t understand the scripture, he wasn’t in the in-crowd, and honestly, he was a sinner to boot. For those of us that gather at these waters, the same is true. We’re lost sinners, broken, and breaking, people who seek to follow Christ and get lost on the way every time. What is to prevent us from being baptized? I’ll be the first to tell you, everything. Everything is to prevent us from being baptized, because it is in baptism that we become a part of God’s eternal family. It is in baptism that we call ourselves Christians, it is in the waters of baptism that we believe we find salvation and freedom. What is to prevent us? Everything. All the things we do to turn our backs on the promise, all the sins we have committed and are going to commit. Everything should keep us out of those waters.

But what that Ethiopian Eunuch discovered on that wilderness road, and what we discover in baptism, is that it isn’t about us. If we were the ones doing the work, than everything would stand in our way. If we were the ones who had to live up to the promise, than everything would be against us. What is to prevent us from being baptized? What is to prevent us, when we know it isn’t about us, but it is about God? Nothing stands in our way, nothing blocks us from the waters of baptism, because we aren’t the ones doing the action. It is God. God meets us in the water and God’s promises wash over us, despite ourselves, regardless of ourselves. God meets us in the water no matter who we are- liars, lepers, famous preachers, lonely people, broken people, sinners. God meets us in the water and there is nothing to stand in our way, because of who God is. The promise is for everyone. The promise is bigger than we could ever imagine. The promise of grace is wildly inclusive.

The eunuch goes away from that place rejoicing. He rejoices wet, covered in waters of baptism, he rejoices because his questions were answered. What is to prevent him from being baptized? What is to prevent him from becoming a part of our eternal family? With God, with radical inclusive grace, nothing. Nothing. So let’s rejoice. Let’s rejoice with wonder at this gift. Let’s rejoice because love has triumphed again. Love has conquered death. Love has covered us with water and called us God’s own. Despite ourselves, only because of God. Amen, and thanks be to God.

Long Time, No Sermon!

Greetings, friends. Yes, it has been a long time since a sermon has graced our page. The fault falls to no one but myself! From now on I will try much harder to make sure that sermons are posted quickly after they are preached. Again, always feel free to post comments or email me any time- feedback and textual struggles are much appreciated!
Peace-
Pastor Brooke Petersen