The Fourth Sunday of Lent - March 18, 2012
John 3:14 - 21
Just as Moses lifted up the snake in the wilderness, so the Son of Man must be lifted up, that everyone who believes may have eternal life in him.”
For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him. Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe stands condemned already because they have not believed in the name of God’s one and only Son. This is the verdict: Light has come into the world, but people loved darkness instead of light because their deeds were evil. All those who do evil hate the light, and will not come into the light for fear that their deeds will be exposed. But those who live by the truth come into the light, so that it may be seen plainly that what they have done has been done in the sight of God.
"Whoever believes in him" . . . . Read through today's text. It is Jesus' discourse on belief.
The language of belief and believing is used a lot in the Church. I think most folks assume they know what it means. Let's hold it to the light a little differently today.
At one level, to believe something is to assent to its truth. To believe is to say, "I think this proposition is true," or "I think it has merit," or "I think it is worth sinking my life into." This is belief as we're most accustomed to it. For the most part, this belief stays in the head.
But there is another level of belief, whereby a person says, "I believe this or that," and then begins the long journey to adjust life in order to reflect that belief. At this level, belief is less about what you think in your mind as it is the way your life shifts because of your belief. Thus, belief is much more active.
The first kind of belief, because it stays in the head, happens in an instant. The second kind of belief, because it has to get into our hearts, hands and feet takes a lifetime.
The first kind of belief may be no more than a strong opinion I hold, and I may hold it against a strong -- and opposing -- opinion you hold.
The second kind of belief isn't to be debated and discussed. We don't study it or analyze it as much as we live it. And in the living, it shapes us.
I think this second kind of belief is what Jesus talked about in John 3. It is not a cheap and easy nod-of-the-head to a certain doctrine or an acknowledgment of certain propositions, but a belief that gives its life to something, that is shaped by a living relationship over time.
And that's why the end of this belief is "real and lasting (translated 'eternal') life."
For today . . . make a list of 8 - 10 things you believe. After you have written those things on paper, read through them again and ask yourself about each one, "What difference does this belief make in the way I live day to day?" This question is not inviting philosophical answers, but practical answers. "What is really going on in my life that reflects what I hold in my belief?"
Just as Moses lifted up the snake in the wilderness, so the Son of Man must be lifted up, that everyone who believes may have eternal life in him.”
For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him. Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe stands condemned already because they have not believed in the name of God’s one and only Son. This is the verdict: Light has come into the world, but people loved darkness instead of light because their deeds were evil. All those who do evil hate the light, and will not come into the light for fear that their deeds will be exposed. But those who live by the truth come into the light, so that it may be seen plainly that what they have done has been done in the sight of God.
"Whoever believes in him" . . . . Read through today's text. It is Jesus' discourse on belief.
The language of belief and believing is used a lot in the Church. I think most folks assume they know what it means. Let's hold it to the light a little differently today.
At one level, to believe something is to assent to its truth. To believe is to say, "I think this proposition is true," or "I think it has merit," or "I think it is worth sinking my life into." This is belief as we're most accustomed to it. For the most part, this belief stays in the head.
But there is another level of belief, whereby a person says, "I believe this or that," and then begins the long journey to adjust life in order to reflect that belief. At this level, belief is less about what you think in your mind as it is the way your life shifts because of your belief. Thus, belief is much more active.
The first kind of belief, because it stays in the head, happens in an instant. The second kind of belief, because it has to get into our hearts, hands and feet takes a lifetime.
The first kind of belief may be no more than a strong opinion I hold, and I may hold it against a strong -- and opposing -- opinion you hold.
The second kind of belief isn't to be debated and discussed. We don't study it or analyze it as much as we live it. And in the living, it shapes us.
I think this second kind of belief is what Jesus talked about in John 3. It is not a cheap and easy nod-of-the-head to a certain doctrine or an acknowledgment of certain propositions, but a belief that gives its life to something, that is shaped by a living relationship over time.
And that's why the end of this belief is "real and lasting (translated 'eternal') life."
For today . . . make a list of 8 - 10 things you believe. After you have written those things on paper, read through them again and ask yourself about each one, "What difference does this belief make in the way I live day to day?" This question is not inviting philosophical answers, but practical answers. "What is really going on in my life that reflects what I hold in my belief?"
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