Pastor Craig - April 2022
What If I Was There?
It is a question that I have often preached about and wondered about. If I would have been alive in the time that Jesus, the Son of God lived; "What would I have experienced?" "What would I have believed?" "What would I have seen?" "How would I have reacted to events in that last week of Jesus' earthly life?" "Would I even have notice that God sent his Son into the world?"
At Christmas time, I set out my Bethlehem village at our house. One of the attractions for me is that life in Bethlehem was still going on with shopkeepers selling their products, shepherds taking care of sheep, people getting their water from the well and tradesmen working on bricks or cloth or working the vineyards. All of them oblivious to the birth of God's Son.
This Lenten season we have heard from "witnesses" about their feelings and observations about that fateful week. Hopefully you have journeyed with the presenters in gaining a slightly different perspective then what we are accustomed to. The wonder is that we can easily put ourselves into the story.
In the 70's, Walter Cronkite renewed the series "You Are There". It aired on Saturday morning and it was so unique that it always grabbed my attention. Cronkite opened with an introduction of a time and place in history and then it would be acted out. Events like signing of the Declaration of Independence, Hindenburg disaster, or the Alamo were brought to life before my child like eyes. He would always sign off with "AND YOU WERE THERE!" It felt that you had witnessed history and it put you in the midst of it.
The wonder about history is that "hindsight is 20/20". We unlike the disciples and the people of Jesus' time have an advantage that they did not. We could see and experience the whole story of Jesus. To be able to look back over his life and see and truly hear the message that Jesus was trying so desperately for the people to hear. To see the miracles not as ends of themselves, but leading all of us to a sense of wellness and wholeness. To hear his confrontations with the leaders of the day and even his own disciples, as opportunities for us to get insight into Jesus' teachings and purpose for his life.
My own question which can never be answered is "Would I even have known the Son of God had been sent or would I have missed the whole thing by just taking care of all of those other responsibilities that are just part of our day to day living?"
I find great comfort in the words that Jesus spoke to Thomas after he appeared to him and Thomas declared "My Lord and My God!" Jesus said, "Have you believed because you have seen me? Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have come to believe." (John 20:28-29)
Believe that even though we were not physically present at the events of Jesus' life, we can find comfort in knowing through God's Holy Spirit that we get to share in the hearing of the words "AND YOU WERE THERE!"
HE IS RISEN! HE IS RISEN, INDEED!
Pastor Craig