John 15:9-17
“Inviting To: A Relationship with Jesus”
Preached Sunday, August 7, 2022
You just heard about our vision goal and I hope and pray that you are JUST as excited about it as I and the rest of our vision team are. And today is the start of a 4 week sermon series that will be a good foundation as we consider how to best live out our goal of 500 invitations extended.
So today’s theme is “Inviting to: A Relationship with Jesus.” The subsequent weeks will be:
“Inviting to: A Relationship with Christians”
“Inviting to: A Relationship with the World”
"Inviting to: A Relationship with Grace”
Jesus is first - makes sense as Jesus is the foundation of all that we believe and do as Christians.
And so this week, as I prepared for this sermon, I kept on turning over a question in my mind. The question: What does it mean to have a relationship with Jesus?
Now, some of the first things that popped into my mind when considering this question and the phrase “relationship with Jesus” were actually negative connotations and some baggage around this phrase. And let me be clear upfront, there is nothing inherently wrong with the following associations whether they are negative or positive associations for you. It has more to do with how these associations and this phrase have been weaponized in certain Christian circles.
So for me the first thing that popped into my head around the phrase “relationship with Jesus” was “It’s about a relationship - not a religion.” Or some variation of that phrase which I am sure many of you have heard. For some people, they really dig this phrase. For me I’ve seen how it’s been used against people in certain denominations or how it’s used to kind of avoid accountability if one has been acting less than Christ-like…And really, for me it’s about relationship AND religion. Hand-in-hand…but more on that some other time.
And the second negative association with some baggage that popped into my head was the phrase “inviting Jesus into your heart” and the Sinner’s Prayer. Do you all know what I mean when I say that? In some traditions there is this little prayer that is supposed to recognize that you are a sinner in need of forgiveness and recognizes that Jesus is God and invites him into your heart to start your life anew as a Christian. Now, its intent, I believe, is kind of “how to take that first step” to start a relationship with Jesus. But my baggage around it is that it’s been used as a litmus test or a hurdle to pass in order to prove whether you’re a “real” Christian. Some people have even been forced, coerced, guilted or shamed into praying it. And while it may be a helpful tool for some on their journey with Jesus, it’s completely unnecessary for many. For many if you’re at the point where you would pray those words and mean them - well, you’re already in relationship with Jesus. And you know, as Methodists we believe in something called prevenient grace meaning God’s grace is ALWAYS there and ALWAYS being extended to you by the God who knew you before you were formed in the womb…so you know, we all already have a relationship with Jesus. And we do infant baptisms that recognize how God is present in someone’s life before they even know it…
ANYWAY, you can tell I got baggage but this sermon isn’t the place to unpack it! The things is, if I, an ordained Christian minister who LOVES Jesus and LOVES the church has some negative connotations and baggage with these phrases and the associations with the phrase “relationship with Jesus” - think about how much more someone who has left the church or been hurt by the church or is even just on the outside looking in can have with these phrases!
So today we really need to look at the phrase “relationship with Jesus” and think about the positive associations, those that are good and loving and meaningful and life-changing! So that we can share those associations with the world.
So what does it mean to be in a relationship with Jesus?
Scripture, hymns, and Christians liturgy often uses relationships metaphors to talk about Jesus. For example and these all come from Scripture and our Christian tradition:
Jesus as Brother.
Jesus as Groom.
Jesus as Lover.
Jesus as Friend.
AND, Jesus as a member of the Trinity - and where one member of the Trinity is, in their perfect one-ness, they all are.
So it’s also fair to consider Jesus as Father, Mother, Parent, and Sister - common relationship metaphors used for the other members of the Trinity.
Relationship metaphors as names for Jesus are apt because Jesus is a member of the Triune God who IS relationship - each member of the Trinity - Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, is in such perfect relationship within themselves that they are one. And it is through Jesus that we are invited into this perfect relationship with the Triune God.
So basically, any relationship that reflects God’s relationship and that is, any relationship that is loving, warm, safe - that relationship can be used as a metaphor for our relationship with Jesus.
So in a healthy relationship that we know through our earthly relations, in those relationships, we love and know that we are loved. And that’s really what a relationship boils down to. To have a relationship with Jesus is to love God and to know that you are loved. But a step beyond our relationships that we know in this life, to have a relationship with Jesus is to have a relationship with Love. Not just a loving relationship, right? But a relationship with the One who IS Love. And it is knowing you are loved no matter what - it’s not conditional on our love. That’s one of my favorite parts of our full, traditional communion liturgy: “When we turned away, and our love failed, your love remained steadfast.”
Turning to our Gospel lesson we read today: to have a relationship with Jesus is to abide in Jesus. To abide in Jesus is to abide in his love: “As the Father has loved me, so I have loved you; abide in my love.”
Abide means to live, to dwell. The first part of this chapter of Scripture talks about the grape that grows on the vine. The grape abides on the vine. Another place we see this in Scripture is what many of us have heard as “mansions” in John 14, a Scripture that is often read at funerals. “In my father’s house there are many mansions/rooms….abiding places.” Abiding with God means to live in the presence of God, with God. The Rev. Meda Stamper defines abiding places as “places where one is deeply at home.” Perhaps that’s what it means to have a relationship with Jesus - to be deeply at home with Jesus.
Now, the ideal home, like the ideal relationship, is somewhere or with someone or someones, where you feel safe and loved for exactly who you are.
On a very simple level, I think of how as soon as I get home, I throw on pajama pants or sweats and put my hair up in a messy bun. When I’m at home and done for the day, I want to be comfy. But it’s beyond a superficial bodily comfy, it’s a place of comfort because I know it’s a place where I am safe to let my guard down. There are no thoughts of “what will people think.” There is no need to look or act a certain way. It’s just me - as I am. And I know that I am with people who love me for just me, as I am. Literal and metaphorical messy buns and all.
Now, not all houses and not all relationships are places of safety, acceptance, and love. And we lament that. Remember, the earthly relationships and homes we use as a metaphor for a relationship with Jesus are just that - metaphors. They aren’t perfect and they’ll resonate differently for different people.
And, given all this, we can say that abiding in Jesus is having a home in God - a home that, wherever you find yourself, whatever situation you’re in - you still have a home where you know you are in the loving hands of God.
Now, abiding in Jesus, while it can give us warm, fuzzy feelings, is not a cocoon where the rest of the world is shut out. It’s not a mansion with gates or even a private residence! Jesus says this: “If you keep my commandments, you will abide in my love…This is my commandment, that you love one another as I have loved you.”
Given all this, let’s now bring in our mission at Grace (“to invite all into a joyous and caring Christian community”) and our new vision goal (In order to build, strengthen, and renew connections with Grace, we will extend 500 invitations with the hope that 50 or more will be accepted).
In order to invite others into a relationship with Jesus, we first need to abide in Jesus. When we abide in Jesus, individually and collectively, our joy is made complete and we love one another. Hmmm…does that sound like “a joyous and caring Christian community” to you? And we need to abide in Jesus FIRST so that others can see how we abide in the love of God. And when we then invite them into a relationship with us, into a relationship with you, they will learn of God’s love through you as you live out God’s command to love one another.
Now, a popular quote among many Christians is attributed to St. Francis and goes something like this, “Preach the Gospel at all times. Use words if necessary.”
And I need to tell you that in our day and age, it is VERY necessary to use words ALONG with our actions that preach the Gospel at all times. Because there is a lot of baggage and preconceived notions about what it means to be in a relationship with Jesus out there. And that baggage and preconceived notions require that ALL our actions AND ALL our words AND ALL our love show the whole world that those negative things aren’t what being in a relationship with Jesus is about. Instead we need to show them our Love - a love that comes from abiding in the one who is Love. To show ALL that a relationship with Jesus, an abiding relationship with Jesus, means always having a place where you are deeply at home and deeply loved by the God who is love.
My prayer for all of us today is that we may abide in Christ. That we may live out his commandment to love others, And that we may invite all, using our actions and words, so that all may come to know God’s abiding love.
Amen.
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