Today is All Saints Day the day we remember the saints who have gone before us. This year the saints seem much closer than ever before. The early church saints in the far recesses of my memory are now joined by one with whom I shared my life. I know that John did not die into nothingness, but into a new life with Jesus and all the saints.
You are not going to believe what I happened upon in My Documents. Here is a sermon John preached three years ago. He wrote it out word for word. Blessings.
All Saints’ Day Homily
November 6, 2005
Today we are observing a special day of honor for all of the saints and martyrs who have gone before us and who now stand before the presence of God. This feast dates back to around 359, and became linked to November 1st in the Western Church, probably because of the need to counteract the pagan festival of Samhain in Ireland, which is what we see echoes of in our Halloween. But the foundation of the celebration is not in a pagan holiday. Rather, it is in the teaching of the church about the communion of the saints.
Recently, I read a comment about the growing religion of Wicca. Did you know that many Wiccans were originally brought up as Christians, but left Christianity because of its failure to acknowledge the unseen realities that Wicca claims to access? If that is the case, then that is the result of a weak form of Christianity that has failed to grasp the significance of the teaching of the Bible and tradition.
If you have ever read the book of Hebrews, you may recall that in the 11th chapter, the writer compiles a list of faithful believers from the Old Testament who followed God through many difficulties and through much suffering. In every case, they were faithful to hope for the salvation that God had promised, but that they had not yet received. People like Abel, Enoch, Noah, Abraham, Sarah, Jacob, Joseph, Moses, Gideon, Samson, David, Samuel, the prophets – people of whom the world was not worthy.
After making that list, then the writer of Hebrews says this in chapter 12, verse 1: Therefore, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us also lay aside every weight and the sin that clings so closely, and let us run with perseverance the race that is set before us, looking to Jesus the pioneer and perfecter of our faith, who for the sake of the joy that was set before him endured the cross, disregarding its shame, and has taken his seat at the right hand of the throne of God.
And a bit later in that chapter: You have not come to something that can be touched, a blazing fire, and darkness, and gloom, and a tempest, and the sound of a trumpet, and a voice whose words made the hearers beg that not another word be spoken to them. But you have come to Mount Zion and to the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem, and to innumerable angels in festal gathering, and to the assembly of the firstborn who are enrolled in heaven, and to God the judge of all, and to the spirits of the righteous made perfect, and to Jesus, the mediator of a new covenant, and to the sprinkled blood that speaks a better word than the blood of Abel.
Did you realize that we are surrounded with that kind of invisible community? When we come into the worship of the kingdom, we enter an assembly that is gathered now in heaven, and there is a whole crowd of angels and saints cheering us on, interceding for us, all through the centrality of the Lamb who is seated on the throne.
Our first reading this morning speaks of that same thing. There, the apostle John in Revelation tells us that he saw a group of 144,000 people marked with the seal of God – 12,000 from each tribe of Israel. But then, the next verse says, “After this I looked, and there was a great multitude that no one could count, from every nation, from all tribes and peoples and languages, standing before the throne and before the Lamb, robed in white.”
What a fascinating contrast – the perfect number (1000 times 12 for each heir of Abraham times 12 again) – some kind of symbolic count that means, I believe, that every single person who is to be there is there. But the next vision – the multitude is so great that it simply can’t be counted. The vastness of God’s redemptive work is overwhelmingly extensive.
But we in our scientific societies have lost faith in what we cannot see. That is why people are crying out for spiritual reality and for power that is rooted in more than cerebral thought, individualistic, materialistic worldviews.
How often do we remember that unseen reality? How should we respond to its existence?
I’m reminded of a story in the Old Testament. The prophet Elisha was in the city of Dothan, being sought by an enemy king. When his attendant went out early in the morning, he saw an army with horses and chariots all around the city. He said to Elisha, “Alas, master! What shall we do?” Elisha replied, “Do not be afraid, for there are more with us than there are with them.” Then Elisha prayed, “O Lord, please open his eyes that he may see.” So the Lord opened the eyes of the servant, and he saw; the mountain was full of horses and chariots of fire all around Elisha. (II Kings 6:14-17)
If that was true for the prophet Elisha, do you realize that it is also true for us? It is because we are surrounded with such a great cloud of witnesses that we are encouraged to lay aside the weight of sins that beset us, and to run with patience the race of this life, looking up to Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith.
So the feast of All Saints is an occasion to be reminded that we are not alone. God’s perfect plan of redemption is going to be completed – we do not have to lose heart because we struggle now. The worship that leads all of the saints to fall down and worship the Lamb is the worship that we are not just called to enter into – it’s one that we are actually a part of whether we fully see it or not.
Perhaps you need encouragement today – take to heart the words of hope that are promised us after we are washed in the blood of the Lamb, and after we die: we will be before the throne of God, worshipping him day and night, and the one who is seated on the throne will shelter us. We will hunger no more, and thirst no more; the sun will not strike us, or any scorching heat; the Lamb will be our shepherd, and he will guide us to springs of the water of life, and God will wipe every tear away from our eyes.
What a privilege then today to bring into this communion those children that God has given us. The water that they will be covered in is not “just water” – just like Rich Trelease’s $20 bill last week wasn’t just a piece of paper. Here we enter into unseen realities and mysteries that will mark the lives of these children forever. If you doubt that, imagine what it would mean to be dedicated to some form of darkness in a pagan ceremony. To be delivered of that influence would potentially take a lifetime. So, to be baptized will place a seal on these children that will call them to faith. That doesn’t mean that they must not submit, confess, welcome and invite Jesus into their lives, and be filled with the Holy Spirit. But it does mean that even though they are not fully conscious of it yet, they are entering into a profound reality that God extends to them, as the source of their lives and their hope of redemption.
Finally, let us ask that we be granted the eyes to see those things that are needful for us in our spiritual pilgrimage. Perhaps that idea can introduce the fear that we could go way overboard on seeing the unseen, and in fact, it is very possible to do that. Remember that our focus is to be on Jesus, the Lamb at the CENTER of the throne; and yet, at special times of spiritual battle, of danger, of discouragement, God may open our eyes to see things that are not unreal, but simply not regularly visible. Simply knowing that that reality is there may serve to build our faith.
[Closing Prayer]
God, place a great peace and deep-rootedness in us today. We are surrounded by saints and angels – Jesus himself at the center. The praise and the prayers of the saints are continuous and ascend on our behalf – we are not alone, nor are we left to our own inexperience, immaturity, and weakness. Our own destiny is secure, even if we have to face a great ordeal. We pray for the unity of the church, and the ingathering of all of those who are yet to receive the revelation of God’s truth and of His Spirit. Lord, open our eyes to see the way we are surrounded by your protection, and to discern the battles that are waged against us. Cause us to remember that we wrestle not against flesh and blood – people are not our primary enemies – but against spiritual realities that hate you and caused your death. We praise you for the privilege of sharing in your sufferings, because we know that your glory has already been revealed in your resurrection and ascension. Glory to you. Amen
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