Numbers
21: 4–9; Psalm 107: 1–3, 17–22; Ephesians 2: 1–10; John 3: 14–21
This is the homily that
was given at Grace & St. Peter’s in Baltimore, Maryland on Sunday, March 11,
2018 by Fr. Gene Tucker.
“DARKNESS
INTO LIGHT”
(Homily texts: Numbers 21: 4-9 & John 3: 14–21)
Our
Old Testament reading from the Book of Numbers and our Gospel text from John’s
Gospel account, chapter three, are well matched. Jesus makes mention of the
incident we hear this morning from Numbers in His discourse with the Pharisee,
Nicodemus.
Two
themes bind these two readings together:
The first theme is the creation of the bronze serpent[1]
in the wilderness and Jesus’ mention of that incident, and the other theme is God’s
action to save His people. God’s goodness and mercy are seen in the wilderness,
and in Jesus’ saving act, made known to us on Good Friday.
God’s
acting to save His people, which demonstrates God’s goodness and mercy, brings
hope in the midst of despair. God’s goodness and mercy create light in the
midst of darkness.
Let’s
explore these aspects of each reading a little further.
As
we make our way through the Book of Numbers, we read of the rebelliousness of
God’s people: They grumble as they make their way through the wilderness,
saying that there is no water, and there is nothing to eat, and what they do
have to eat, they are tired of. So God, in His mercy and out of His goodness,
provides water from the rock, and then God provides manna from heaven and quail
to eat. Still, many in Israel long to return to Egypt. They say, in effect, “we
had it so good there, we had plenty to eat.”
God’s
people’s wilderness journey is marked by alternating periods of good times and
bad times: bad times that are marked with the grumbling and rebelliousness of
God’s people, who create for themselves a veil of separation from God, a veil which
darkens their relationship with Him. God must intervene to tear apart the veil,
to show to His people that He still loves and cares for them, and is willing to
save them, in spite of their wayward ways.
Now,
let’s fast-forward to Jesus’ discussion with the Pharisee Nicodemus. Our Gospel
text picks up at the end of the back-and-forth conversation between Jesus and
his nighttime visitor, and – in the fashion that we often find in John’s Gospel
account – the discussion between the two takes up the first part of chapter
three.. But then, the discussion ends and a teaching by our Lord continues.
Nicodemus simply drops out of the narrative. Our Gospel text picks up at the
end of the conversation.
Nicodemus
was a member of the Pharisees, who were part of the ruling elite in Jesus’ day.
The Pharisees, like the priests in the Temple and the puppet King Herod who had
been installed by the Romans, cared little for the welfare of the people who
were in their charge. All of these, the priests, the Pharisees and the king
were consumed with serving themselves, and in guaranteeing their place in
society. Moreover, the Romans, who carried out a brutal occupation of the Holy
Land, cared not at all for the welfare of the people.
No
wonder that Jesus will lament the situation God’s people find themselves in,
saying that they are “like sheep without a shepherd”.
The
net effect of all this self-serving leadership was to create a very dark time
for God’s people. Life was difficult, the leadership of the people was corrupt
(as we heard in our Gospel reading from last week, which put before us Jesus’
cleansing of the Temple), Roman taxes
were high (one estimate states that the effective tax rate was about 66%!), and
the Romans ruled with threats of violence.
God’s
people, on their way to the Promised Land, found themselves in a wilderness,
and God’s people in Jesus’ day found themselves in another sort of wilderness.
The wilderness is a place where life is threatened, and human existence is in
jeopardy.
It
is in the wilderness that God often comes to save His people. God established
His covenant with Moses and the people in the giving of the Ten Commandments on
Mt. Sinai, in the wilderness. God showed His love for His people by giving them
water to drink, manna from heaven and quail to eat.
In
the fullness of time, God entered the wilderness of the first century to save
His people. God sent His only Son to show us how much He loves us. (John 3:16,
perhaps the most well-known verse in the New Testament) affirms this truth. The
cross, to which Jesus alludes in His teaching to Nicodemus, is the object to
which our eyes are drawn.
We
are about to approach the celebration of the Holy Table, the Mass. The
Sacrament of the altar is a commemoration of our Lord’s sacrifice on Good
Friday. We recall that it is to the cross that we are drawn whenever we gather
to commune with the Lord under the elements of bread and wine. The fair linen
which covers the altar is marked with five crosses, recalling for us the five
wounds that our Lord bore for our sins and for our salvation.
The
holy sacrifice of the Mass is a guarantee of God’s love, God’s goodness, and
God’s mercy toward all who come to Him in faith.
As
we come to this holy table, we come not for solace only, but for strength to do
God’s will. We come not for pardon only, but for a renewing of our hearts and
our minds. We are united with Christ in a death like His, in order that we may
be raised to a new life in a resurrection like His. (See Romans 6: 3 – 9.)
A
Collect for Mission for the Daily Office, Morning Prayer, summarizes our
mission quite well:[2]
“Lord Jesus Christ, who didst stretch out thine arms of love on the hard wood of the cross, that everyone might come within thy saving embrace: So clothe us in thy spirit, that we, reaching forth our hands in love, may bring those who do know thee to the knowledge and love of thee; for the honor of thy Name.”
AMEN.
[1] It is worth noting that the bronze serpent
is a part of the symbol that is associated with the healing arts. Look, for
example, at an ambulance, or in a doctor’s office, and you will see the bronze
serpent on a pole in the middle of the symbol.
[2] Book of Common Prayer, 1979, page 58.
