The texts for this seventh Sunday of Easter, May 26, 2019, in lectionary year C are John 17:20-26 & Acts 16:16-34. We had the joy of celebrating Levi’s baptism this morning in worship as well!
Especially as I was home with a fever during part of my sermon preparation this week, I’m indebted to Ronald Cole-Turner’s essay on pages 474-478 of Feasting on the Word: Year C, Volume 2 and George Carlson’s God Pause devotional for Friday, May 24, 2019.
Miss last week’s sermon? Read it here.
I wonder, have you ever thought about what you want your last words to be?
I was looking at famous last words this week, and one of my favorite last words is from British Prime Minister Winston Churchill, who said before slipping into a coma, “I’m bored with it all.”
Writer Edgar Allan Poe was a little more serious. His last words were, “Lord, help my poor soul.” I’d say that counts as a prayer, which is not a bad way to go. Composer Ludwig von Beethoven is said to have died after the words, “Applaud, my friends, the comedy is finished.”
Before he died on the cross, Jesus’ last words were, “It is finished.” But at least the way John tells the story, Jesus knows for a while that his death is coming, so he has a lot of last words to his disciples as he gets closer to the cross. John’s Gospel spends four chapters, John 14, 15, 16, and 17, on Jesus’ “Farewell discourse.”
Before he’s arrested, but knowing the end is near, he gives his final instructions to his disciples. In the section we just heard, Jesus promises them two things. First, he tells them he is leaving them his peace. Because of what he’s doing for them, they no longer need to live in fear.
He has shown them a new path for life, a new hope that endures even beyond death and will last after he is no longer with them. Jesus has given them a new understanding of God and God’s kingdom.
Second, Jesus promises the gift of the Holy Spirit. Although he will no longer be walking around and teaching the disciples in person, they will not be left alone. God will give them an “Advocate.”
That word advocate means someone who is on your side, standing up for you, giving you guidance. It’s a little like a lawyer, in the best possible sense. (Ever thought of the Holy Spirit as your lawyer?) The Holy Spirit will represent them, helping and guiding and working through them.
This promise is fulfilled a few weeks later at Pentecost. As we’ll celebrate in two weeks, the Holy Spirit comes upon the disciples. As Jesus promised, the Spirit reminds them of everything Jesus said to them and did for them while he was with them. The Holy Spirit leads and guides the believers. That’s what’s going on in our first reading from Acts.
The full title of the book of Acts is “The Acts of the Apostles” but a better title would be, “The Acts of the Holy Spirit” because in all these stories of the early church, it’s the Holy Spirit who’s at work, nudging, pushing the apostles, working through them.
Today’s story about Lydia is a great example. The story is about Peter leading Lydia to Christ, but Peter is just a tool of the Holy Spirit.
It takes a lot to get Lydia to faith. A chapter earlier, in Acts 15, there had been a controversy about whether the Gospel should even be preached to Gentiles, and the skeptics decided they couldn’t stand in the Spirit’s way.
Twice already in this chapter, the Spirit has redirected Paul and Timothy. In verse 6, the Holy Spirit forbids them from going to Asia, and then in verse 7, they attempted to go somewhere named Bithynia, but the Spirit did not allow them. Then Paul gets this vision telling him to go to Macedonia, and he obeys and sets out. Incidentally, this is the first time the Biblical story moves into Europe.
As for Lydia, a Gentile, she’s there in the right place at the right time to meet Paul, and to listen to what he has to say. The Holy Spirit has brought the two of them together, and it’s God who does the work – the Lord opens Lydia’s heart.
Paul, Timothy, and Lydia are all willing to follow the Holy Spirit’s leading, but it’s the Holy Spirit who brings Lydia to faith. Any time we think we’re “finding Jesus” “turning our life over to God” or anything like that, it’s the Holy Spirit at work.
Maybe for you the Spirit has worked through parents who raised you with the habit of attending church. Maybe you can point to other people, like pastors or grandparents or friends whom the Spirit worked through. Maybe you’ve had a dramatic conversion experience where the Holy Spirit’s work was obvious.
However you got here today, it was the Holy Spirit at work behind the scenes building faith and opening hearts.
This is a great story for this weekend as we’re celebrating Levi’s baptism, because look what Lydia does her heart is opened: She gets baptized. Baptism is a public commitment of her new faith. In the waters of baptism, she’s washed clean and brought to new life.
Now, different flavors of Christianity have different understandings of baptism. For our Baptist sisters and brothers, it’s important to be old enough to know what’s going on before you can be baptized.
Usually you need to be 12 years old, the age of reason, before you can make the that decision. They emphasize that baptism isn’t something to do lightly. It’s publicly saying yes to God; saying yes, I believe Jesus is my savior and I want to be part of God’s family. Before you make that commitment, you should know what you’re doing. Lots of non-denominational churches share that Baptist understanding.
As Lutherans, however, we believe baptism is about what God is doing, not about what we’re doing. We look at this story of Lydia, and we pay attention to that last verse in the reading. Lydia believes and is baptized – but it’s not only her who gets baptized, it’s her and her household.
As a wealthy businesswoman, Lydia’s household would include her servants and employees, along with their families. Lydia makes the decision on behalf of her household, just like Kirsten & Pat are doing for Levi.
We baptize infants because we look at stories like this and see that God is the one doing the work. On some level, especially for any of you who were baptized as older kids or adults, we agree with the Baptists that baptism is saying yes to God, saying yes to joining God’s family and accepting God’s forgiveness. But it’s far more about God saying yes to us. It’s God’s work, not ours. [For more on the Lutheran understanding of infant baptism as God’s work, see this section in Luther’s Large Catechism.]
In the waters of holy baptism, Jesus washes us clean and accepts us into his family. It’s not about whether we believe well enough or whether we’re good enough or whether we are old enough to understand what’s going on; it’s all about what God is doing.
An infant coming to the font is a beautiful illustration of how all of us are before God. All of us are 100% reliant on God’s grace.
For the same reason, Lutherans never do re-baptisms, even for people who have wandered away from the church. Even if you’ve completely turned your back on Jesus, Jesus hasn’t turned his back on you.
Re-baptizing someone makes no sense, because it’s saying somehow God didn’t do a good enough job the first time. We’ll do affirmations of baptism, but baptism is a one-time thing for all eternity.
And remember, it’s not just Lutherans who understand baptism as God’s work rather than ours. Catholics, Methodists, Presbyterians, Episcopalians, and many others have the same understanding.
Even if you can point to a particular time in your life when you came to faith, even if you wrestled with Christianity and decided to convert, it was still the Holy Spirit working in your heart that led you to that decision. The Holy Spirit always gets the credit for calling us to faith.
On February 18, 1546, Martin Luther on his deathbed was asked by his friend Justus Jonas, “Do you want to die standing firm on Christ and the doctrine you have taught?” With the help of the Holy Spirit, he answered, “Yes.”
Later, a piece of paper was found on Luther’s desk with his last written words. It’s half in German, half in Latin, and it’s pronounced something like this: “Wir sein Pettler, Hoc est Verum.” I speak neither Latin nor German, so in English, it’s “We are beggars, that is true.”
“We are beggars, that is true” sums up our relationship with God. All we can do for God is receive what God does for us. We need the Holy Spirit to bring us to faith.
We come to the Lord’s table with hands outstretched, begging to receive Christ. Whether it’s as infants or adults, we are equally helpless as we come to the font to be washed clean, to be given new life, eternal life with our Lord. Thanks be to God.
Amen