The Land of Never
1 John 3:1-3
November 3, 2019 anno Domini –Redeemer
You never shed a tear. You never say, “I want.” You never complain. You never have to visit a doctor. Your check engine light never comes on. You never argue with your wife, your mom, or your children. You are never exhausted. You never want to be by yourself. You never have a selfish thought. You never sin. You never go to a funeral again. Never.
In any other conversation on earth I would immediately need to add the disclaimer, “Well, I shouldn’t say ‘never.’” But this is no earthly conversation. This is the heavenly reality –the reality John sees in Revelation, of which Jesus speaks in the Gospel, that John pens in his first Epistle. “See what kind of love the Father has given to us, that we should be called children of God; and so we are.” (1 John 3:1, ESV) This is your reality. You are a child of God.
The Kingdom of heaven is yours. Children of God are poor. We are poor in Spirit. We are poor, miserable sinners. We don’t boast about ourselves, but of Christ. In our successes we say, “Thanks be to God” and in our failures we pray, “Lord, have mercy.” We are poor but generous because in reality we are rich toward God in Christ.
This is the Kingdom where the Sower scatters seed without fear of running out. Where the vineyard owner pays wages that are ridiculous. Where one lost sheep is so valuable that any effort will be expended to rescue it. Where prodigal sons are welcomed home and adulterous woman are forgiven, where forgiveness covers 70 times 7 sins per day. The King willingly spent the precious blood and flesh of His Son to bring you into His Kingdom. Don’t worry about anything you’ve sacrificed or lost or were unable to gain. Yours is the Kingdom of God.
You shall be comforted. You have shed tears, but no more. On the last day you will see what really happened at the death of your loved ones who believe. You will see the other side of the graveside service where you wept and the other side of the communion rail where you knelt in loneliness. You will see the company of angels who welcomed your loved ones with rejoicing. You will hear the whole company of heaven singing the same Sanctus we sing in Christ’s bodily presence, “Holy, holy, holy, Lord God of Sabaoth.”
You shall inherit the earth. Remember how it was in the beginning. God gave Adam and Eve everything. Every plant for food. Every animal to rule over. “Fill the earth,” He told them. It’s all yours to use and cherish. When they took the one thing He did not give them they lost it all. Ever since then we have been grabbing for the creation we lost and it always slips through our grip. We buy this, chase that experience, desire that man’s wife or that woman’s husband. We eat too much. Drink too much. Indulge our pleasures too much and wake up empty, sick, and yet always addicted to more. This old earth is passing away, but the new earth is your inheritance forever.
Your hunger and thirst for righteousness will be satisfied. Our Armed Forces put an end to a terrorist this past week. Seven more will probably rise up in his place. It is rumored that Saint Cloud is filled with hate. I don’t think so, but If say that I’ll be a labelled a hater. The day is coming when doctors, at the birth of a child will no longer say what they know to be true medically and biologically. They won’t say, “It’s a boy” or “It’s a girl.” They won’t even say, “Wait and see.” They’ll say, “Wait until the child tells you.” There is a lot wrong, not only out there, but in here. We murder, beat, and abuse each other with our thoughts and deeds. We pervert God’s good gifts for our pleasure. We know better, but do the worst to each other. We hunger and thirst for everything to be right, including ourselves, yet we are helpless to make it right. We will be satisfied. The day is coming when our bodies will be made new and our hearts will be completely scrubbed of sin. Christ’s “It is finished” from the cross will be finished in us at the Resurrection. All things declared right in Christ will be made right.
Saint John doesn’t say, “So we will be.” He says, “So we are.” Beloved, we are God’s children now, and what we will be has not yet appeared; but we know that when he appears we shall be like him, because we shall see him as he is.” (1 John 3:1–2, ESV) Our lives are hidden with God in Christ. Jesus promised His followers – as it went for Him so it will go for us. The true God was hidden in human flesh when the Son of God became man. He was hidden in swaddling clothes and a manger. He was hidden in little Nazareth growing up. Everyone thought He was the first born of Mary and Joseph. They did not see He was the only-begotten Son of God. But after He was baptized He showed just enough of His Divinity to prove His Words. Whoever has seen Me has seen the Father. (John 14:9) He fed 5000 people with two fish and fives loaves of bread. He walked on water. He raised Jairus’ daughter. He taught as if He was the author of the Old Testament. But they did not recognize Him as God. He came to His own and His own did not receive Him. You know what they did. They arrested Him. They put Him on trial. They manufactured evidence. The judge pronounced Him not guilty three times and then sentenced Him to death.
Don’t be surprised if you suffer for the faith. Jesus suffered. Don’t be surprised if your children don’t want your faith. Jesus’ brother James thought He was nuts. Don’t be surprised when Christians are arrested for confessing their faith, when charges are manufactured, when they are not guilty and still convicted. That’s what happened to Jesus. Don’t be surprised when evil men consider themselves good and you evil. Don’t be surprised when Christians die for the faith like they regularly do in Africa and the Middle East and China. Don’t be surprised if some day they come for you. According to Jesus that day will be a blessed day for you because it gives evidence of your faith. “Blessed are you when others revile you and persecute you and utter all kinds of evil against you falsely on my account. Rejoice and be glad, for your reward is great in heaven, for so they persecuted the prophets who were before you.”
But do not be afraid on that day, for your faith sees what your eyes do not. God worked man’s evil for good. The Father worked His Son’s death for your salvation. Your sins were heaped upon and hidden in Jesus. His death wasn’t injustice. It was God’s justice and mercy working together. Your sin had to be punished, but you needed to be saved. That’s what Jesus did, hidden under His brutal death on the cross. He died for your sin so that you could live in His forgiveness.
Do not be afraid. Your faith sees the truth. Jesus is not dead. He confirmed His word and work with His resurrection on the third day. We do not worship a dead prophet or some guy who dreamed up a religion that no one can prove or disprove. We worship the living God who took on human flesh, who has more witnesses to His time on earth than any other person of ancient history. He rose from the dead and promised all who believe — He promised you through Saint John, “we shall be like him, because we shall see him as he is.” We shall rise again on the last day. And then we enter that land of never – never tears, never suffering, never sin, never attacked, never afraid, and never death. We can say never because we are God’s children now, through faith in the name of Jesus. Amen.