Spelling "Albuquerque"

Dear friends in Christ, grace to you and peace, from God our Father, and His Son, our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. Amen.

There are countless jokes, quips and stories about the day we will enter heaven, and most of them have Peter meeting us at the Pearly Gates. I don’t know where scripture tells us that Peter will have such a role in heaven, but most humor is fictional anyway, so that’s okay. In my favorite anecdote, Peter is once again manning the gates, and a certain man is preparing to enter. “Welcome to heaven” Peter says warmly. “Before you come in, there’s an entrance exam.” The man is surprised; he was a Lutheran and believed in grace, and thought Jesus had taken care of everything. But Peter continued, “It’s a spelling test, and you have to spell a word.”   “Okay” says the deceased, “What’s the word?” “Love” Peter answers. And the man says “That’s easy: L-O-V-E.” Welcome to heaven.

Weeks later, Peter finds the man and mentions he will be on vacation and could the man guard the gates of heaven for a couple of days? The man agrees, and Peter reminds him “Don’t forget about the test.” As irony would have it, the very first person to knock on heaven’s door while the man was in charge was his ex-wife. “Welcome to heaven” the man said through clinched teeth. “I’m surprised you’re here” she answers. “Likewise” he responds. “There’s a test to get in” the man tells his ex; “you have to spell a word.” “No problem” she says, “what’s the word?” “Albequerque.”

Now, the first thing for me to tell you this morning is that there WILL NOT be a test for us when we stand before the gates of heaven. Jesus took the test for us and we passed. Jesus paid the price with his life and, indeed, took care of everything required for us to enter the Kingdom. Our guilt is gone. Our sin, though scarlet, is as white as snow. We have been forgiven. That’s what this season of Easter is all about; we are celebrating the victory of Jesus Christ.

But having said that, a question does remain for us to answer: How do we spell “love.”?   Do we simply spell it with our lips, or must we spell it with our lives? Do we spell it only to those we like, or live with, or agree with, or do we also spell it to those who are unlovable; those whose lifestyles and language and political leanings are far different from our own? In short, do we proclaim God’s grace to our fellow sinners in this world, or do we act as gatekeepers to heaven, using our judgment to determine who is in, and who is out?

This gospel lesson before us today is somewhat disconcerting at the last. It begins nicely enough, when Jesus appears to his disciples for the third time since the resurrection. The disciples are fishing, but like so many times in the gospel accounts, they have caught nothing; they’re really not very good fishermen, I think. Jesus calls to them from shore, calls them to throw their nets to the other side of the boat. When their nets fill with fish, they recognize that it’s Jesus standing on shore. Peter dives in and swims to shore, the rest of the disciples use the boat, and together they share a breakfast of fish and bread. It’s a nice beginning to their day.

But it’s a conversation that Jesus has with Peter that causes the discomfort. “Peter” Jesus begins, “do you love me more than these?” I can see Jesus pointing to the fishing boats that have been beached; Peter’s livelihood: “Do you love me more than you love your boats, Peter? Do you love me more than you love this lake? More than you love these friends? More than you love your family? Peter, do you love me more than you love life itself?”

It’s an interesting word, love. In English, we have one word with many meanings. We can love our children, love pizza, be in love, and make love. It’s all the same word. But ancient Greeks had multiple words at their disposal. Eros was their word for intimate physical love, and is the root for our word for erotica.
Storge was the word used to describe the love between parents and children, or among the siblings themselves. It implies deep trust and compassionate caring. But the Greek word Jesus used with Peter was agape; a term that indicates an unselfish, sacrificial sort of love. Love with a cost. “Peter” Jesus asks, “Do you agape? Do you love me enough to make sacrifices for me?”

“Yes, Lord; of course I love you” was Peter’s response. “Then feed my lambs” Jesus said.

But the conversation was not yet over, because Jesus asks Peter the same question a second time. “Peter, do you love me? Love me unselfishly? Love me unconditionally?” “Yes Lord” Peter says,” You know that I love you.” “Then care for my sheep” Jesus says.

But Jesus continued; “Peter, do you love me?” Different word for love this time, though. Agape love was replaced with philios love. Philios; a deep, long-lasting friendship that is based on mutual respect and caring. “Peter, do you love me as a friend?”   Now Peter’s feelings were hurt, and perhaps his mind raced to that conversation he had with Jesus on Good Friday. Jesus had predicted that even his best friends would abandon him when the way got hard, and Peter was indignant. “No way, Lord! There is no way I will EVER abandon you!” And Jesus said “Peter, before the rooster crows you will have denied knowing me three times.” And of course he did. Three times, in order to save his own skin, Peter declared “I never knew the man.” And then the rooster crowed. “How do you spell love Peter? By turning your back on me? By lying about our friendship? By abandoning me in my hour of need?” Surely, Peter was now convicted by his own cowardice and his own failure to show his love for Jesus. And now Jesus is giving Peter a second chance.

I have been haunted by the title of Pastor Linda’s sermon from last Sunday; do you remember the title, because it would fit here. Prove It! “Do you love me Peter? Then prove it!” And how does Jesus suggest to Peter a way that he might prove his love? By loving the flock that Jesus loves, that’s how. By feeding the flock that came to be known as “the Church.”

That was 2000 years ago, and in all this time, the assignment has not changed. Jesus still calls his disciples to feed the lambs of God. And who are these lambs? Who are they? They are the children of all ages in our midst who deserve to hear about a gracious God, in a safe environment, where they will not be judged by the color of their skin nor the depth of their sin. But we are also called to love them enough to give them the boundaries of God? Boundaries to keep them safe.   “Tough love” is what we call it today. Do we love them enough to warn them of the consequences of their disobedience?

The lambs are also the new Christians, who need to be nurtured and encouraged in their discipleship. But do we love them enough to call them to emulate Jesus, and not emulate us? Jesus, and not the stars of Wall Street, or Hollywood, or stadiums and arenas? Emulate Jesus, instead of the many 21st century Christian heroes, who talk a good religious game but forget to mention that they, too, are human.

The lambs in our midst are also the Saints who may have grown up in the Church, but have drifted away, or were pushed away, and have never found their way back home. How do we spell love to these lambs? Isn’t it by welcoming them back without condition, without explanation, and without a probationary period, but simply by saying “Welcome home.”? All of this is what it means to feed the lambs.

In 2000 years of the Christian Church, the world has not been impressed by our rigid rules, or our claims of righteousness, or our snappy music, or our splendid buildings. But they have been taken by the way we love. They have watched people like Mother Theresa spend 45 years of her life loving the most desperate people of India. The world watched Albert Schweitzer, an accomplished musician and theologian, leave it all behind and become a doctor serving leper colonies in Africa for 25 years. They have watched a missionary by the name of Jim Elliot go to Ecuador and be killed by the very tribe to whom he was ministering, and whose wife returned to Ecuador and led her husband’s killers to faith in Jesus Christ. Each one of these Saints has taken the words of Jesus seriously and the world has taken notice.

But we don’t have to go to India or Ecuador to feed the lambs; they are right here, today, sitting right beside you. Lambs who need to be loved, and accepted, and encouraged in their walk of faith. That’s what Jesus was saying to Peter; that’s what Jesus is saying to us.

I ran into a member of our church yesterday morning at a coffee shop (where else?) He spoke about this church, about all the friends he has here now, about how engaged his kids have become in our ministry programs. And then he said this; “I finally get it. It’s not just about religion, it’s about the people too.” Yes, it’s all about the people, the lambs that Jesus has called us to care for. So how do you spell love for the lambs who are watching and listening to you? Spell it with your lips, of course; but spell it with your life. Thanks be to God. Amen.

©2010 Steven Molin