In order to say Christ, you have to first do Christ

Wesley United Methodist Church April 30, 2000 John 20:19-31 In order to say Christ, you have to first do Christ Year B Have you ever noticed that we tend to expereince life through the things that interest us to most? If you like to read, you experience life throught the most recent book that you might be reading. If you like music, then you usually find an outlet for that, such as singing in the choir, of you like to talk and to have discussions, then you gravitate to groups that allow that kind of interaction. And when you are not in your area of interest, then many times you are like a fish out of water, you just don't get a whole lot out of the experience. I think that is important to point out, because the ways that we expereince life are also the ways in which we expereince Jesus Christ. Some of us can see Christ in music, some of us can see him in art, some of us can see him in our relationships. Whatever way that we exprience Christ, our experience is always unique and personal. It only aplies to us and our interest. In the gospel lesson, John chapter 20, Christ comes to his disciples in a way that they need him. But I think that it is amazing that he explains that He is intentional about coming to his disciples in ways that only they understand. In other words, Christ knows what our personal interest are, and he takes advantage of those interest and concerns. It is the resurrected Christ, whom is the Christ that we have faith in. and it is after the resurrection that Christ is able to enter into his disciples lives in this new and intimate way. He came to Mary Magdelene as she visited the tomb, he came to Peter in Jerusalem as he was mourning, he came to the two travelers on the road to Emmaus and gave them knowledge, he came to the crowd of 500 as they searched for a sense of direction, he came to those who watched him by the sea as he ascended into heaven. And in each of these situations, he came to address a dep question or yearning of what needed to be done in their lives. For instance, in John 20, After all of the excitement of the cruxificion, the disciples hav closed themselves up in a room. Their biggest interest is in staying out of trouble and saving their lives. They are in a state of fear that they will be crucified next. And in that state of fear, they are not able to think about anything else. The things that they know about themselves, the things that interest them, have taken a back seat to this overwhelming fear. yet Christ is able to come to them even in the midst of that fear and use it to increase their faith. In this state of fear, Christ brings them peace as a community. Even in the midst of community, there seems to be the demand of the disciples to experience this new, resurrected Christ in ways that only one would understand. one of the disciples, Thomas, had not been there with the rest of the group when Christ brought them peace. Thomas was a visual person. In order to experience life, he had to see and to touch it for himself. SO he tells Christ the the only way that he will believe, is if he sees the nails and touches his hands. and Christ allows him to do that. And after an encounter with a Christ that he can expereince in a way that has meaning for him, he exclaims My Lord and my God. Thomas has been given an experience that will stay with him for hte rest of his life. Because Christ was to speak to his natural interest and concern to see and touch in order to believe. We don't hear much about the disciples after the gospels. But Thomas and the rest went to different parts of the world and spread the personal and intimate faith that they had been granted. Thomas went to India, to found a church. The Thomist church in India, still claims Thomas as their founder. Andrew went to Greece, Peter went to Rome, and the other eleven went to different places. Together, they turned the whole world upside down with their faith in christ. They felt that the whole world needed to know that a man had risen from the dead and conquered the darkness of life. More importantly, the world needed to know that this was not a man, but this was God, who had come to save the world. One person at a time, in a very personal and intimate way. and the world needed to be prepared for that encounter. In the gospel story, Christ comes to them in the midst of their fear to speak, and their fear of being killed too. He transforms that fear into peace. Ironically, the things that they fear the most, becomes a reality for each of them. they are all killed for their belief. Yet a personal encounter with Christ, gives them the courage to live life on the edge. To do all that they can to reach the world. People are rarely willing to die for something that doesnt mean anything to them. Today, Christ does not have to challenge us to die for our faith in him. But he does have to challenge us to continue to spread his word, to be disciples and to make disciples of others. The resurrected Christ still makes appearances to the world every day. What are the ways that Christ comes to you? Are you like thomas, do you have to see and to touch with your hands in order for things to be real for you? Or do you have to hear it? or talk about it? or teach it to others? do you have to sing the song, or see the pictures, or do the dance? or write the story? Studies in education shows that each of us has certain set of interest. And that we tend to live our lives through those interest. Christ knows what your interest are, and he has used them in order to have a relationship with you. Yet he also asks each of us to use those interest in continuing the work of the disciples to spread the goood news of Christ' love for us to all people. In order to speak Christ to others, we have to do Christ in our lives. As you think about the ways that you do Christ, I encourage you also to think about ways to use your interest in order to speak Christ to others. Can you teach someone else that song that you love to sing? or help that family that is struggling, or hold that discussion that everyone would love to have, or participate in the drama that would make the gospel so clear. All of us have some type of interest and talent. And Christ has spoken to each of us throught that interest. And he uses that interest, so that we can pass on his salvation to someone else. Yet some times, we get so caught up into our own lives, that we forget to pass it on. We do Christ, but we forget to speak Christ. It there something that is holding you back? For the original disciples, remember it was fear. If they were to pass on the message, they were afraid of what others would do to them. Christ came to them, even in their fear and used it to turn not only the lives of the disciples around, but the whole world. Evangelism is a bad word for many of us to day, it is a word that invokes that fear of the original disciples. and for us, I don't think that we are so much afraid of dying, as we are of being seen by others. We are afraid. We are afraid of being called a Christian. we ar afraid of others laughing at our faith. Perhaps we are afriad that others will tell us that we are wasting our time. That faith in a resurrected Christ is just a joke and it doesn't really matter. Or perhaps we are afriad of suffering. Or maybe we are just afriad that if we actually got up and did something drastic, that things would change the world would be different, and that we would have to change with the situation. Whatever the fear is, the truth is that we don't do a very good job of speaking the words of christ to others, even though each of us is hear, because Christ is speaking with each of us in some way. Christ is speaking to us even in the midst of our fear and inactivity and he is using it to his advantage. to change it, ot tranform it for the whole world to see. the disciples were filled with fear, after the cruxifiction because they knew that they had failed Christ. Yet he assures them, that it this failure and fear is okay. Because it was not them who chose Christ, but it was Christ who chose them. He chose them because he could see that they had the interest and talents to be a part of the body of Christ. And he brings them peace, becuase he knows what they re capable of . He brings them the holy spirit to have the courage to go out into the world. he tell them that he leaves his hope in him. A the father has sent me, I send you, christ tells them as he departs. There is a story of a young soldier, who had been put in chagr of a platoon in world war II. In his fear, he deserted the army and was punished for his inactivity. Yet after he had acused, and he returned to duty, the colonel treated him as if nothing had happended. Soon he had another chance to be put in battle, and he was p