Here we are on All Saints Sunday, a people of faith in Jesus, worshiping in the current reality of heaven and earth where even Jesus, himself, wept at the death of his friend, Lazarus. Here we are, a people of faith in Jesus who may find ourselves wrestling with questions of faith as we hear the question that was asked about Jesus in today’s scripture reading from the 11th chapter of The Gospel According to John, “Could not he who opened the eyes of the blind man have kept this man from dying?”
Here we are, a people of faith in Jesus, worshiping in the promised reality of a new heaven and a new earth recorded in the 21st chapter of The Revelation to John as John hears God saying:
“See, the home of God is among mortals. He will dwell with them; they will be his peoples, and God himself will be with them; he will wipe away every tear from their eyes. Death will be no more; mourning and crying and pain will be no more, for the first things have passed away.”
Here we are on All Saints Sunday, sojourners between the current reality of heaven and earth and the vision of a new heaven and a new earth. A people of faith in Jesus who proclaim that God’s promise to make all things new was realized through our Savior’s death on the cross and through his resurrection from the tomb.
Rev. Dr. Kristin Adkins Whitesides tells us about what it means to live in this time between the current reality of heaven and earth and God’s promised reality of a new heaven and new earth.
“In Celtic Christianity there is a saying: “Heaven and earth are only three feet apart. But in the thin places, the distance is even shorter.” For early Christians in Scotland and Ireland, these thin places were where heaven seemed so close to earth that you could almost see through the veil separating them. They would mark such spots with stone circles and later with churches and cemeteries. Maybe you have experienced a time like that. Where the things of this world and the world to come are so thinly separated that the membrane between them seems to shimmer. These are the moments when we are transported and the normal clay under our feet suddenly becomes holy ground. It is as if we are able to flip to the end of the story for just a moment, to see, even if only briefly the way things will be, in the end. I remember sitting next to my grandmother right before she died. And I watched as her eyes cleared from the fog of pain. And all of a sudden they became the clearest, palest blue. They were so beautiful. It seemed as if, in that moment, she was looking out past my own line of vision, to things that I could not yet glimpse for myself.”
Here we are on All Saints Sunday, a people of faith in Jesus, worshiping God as we give thanks for Warner, David, Kathy, Farrar, Donald, John, Mary, Garrett, Charles, Charles, Fred, James, Elizabeth, and other loved ones whom we have named in our hearts.
As we remember these saints, we do not grieve as the world grieves, for we have faith in a Savior who:
- Wept our tears of grief in the current reality of heaven and earth.
- Experienced death through the cross
- Promises eternal life through his resurrection from the tomb
- Makes possible a new heaven and a new earth where every tear is wiped away as all things become new
As we give thanks for Warner, David, Kathy, Farrar, Donald, John, Mary, Garrett, Charles, Charles, Fred, James, Elizabeth, and other loved ones whom we have named in our hearts on All Saints Sunday, we remember them not only through the current reality of heaven and earth but also the promised reality of a new heaven and a new earth. We remember them not only through the reality of our loss of them, but also through the reality of our love for them. It is in this reality that we confess not only God’s love for them but also God’s love for us as a people of faith in Jesus.
For all the saints we give thanks in the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Amen.
A People of Faith
by Pastor Marc Brown
November 5, 2023
Accompanying Scriptures: Revelation 21:1-5, John 11:30-37
Fort Hill United Methodist Church
Order of Worship for November 5, 2023
Scripture Lesson Revelation 21:1-5, John 11:30-37
The Good News “A People of Faith”
Music “Hymn of Promise” by Natalie Sleeth
Prayer
Blessing
Closing Music “Safe in the Arms of Jesus” arr. Ron Loree
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