You who are on the road Must have a code that you can live by And so become yourself Because the past is just a good bye.
Teach your children well, Their father's hell did slowly go by, And feed them on your dreams The one they picked, the one you'll know by.
Don't you ever ask them why, if they told you, you would cry, So just look at them and sigh and know they love you.
And you, of tender years, Can't know the fears that your elders grew by, And so please help them with your youth, They seek the truth before they can die.
Counter Melody To Above Verse: Can you hear and do you care and Cant you see we must be free to Teach your children what you believe in. Make a world that we can live in.
Teach your parents well, Their children's hell will slowly go by, And feed them on your dreams The one they picked, the one you'll know by.
Don't you ever ask them why, if they told you, you would cry, So just look at them and sigh and know they love you.
As I read through the gospel reading from John, I could not help but think of this song, Teach Your Children, by the rock band Crosby, Stills, Nash, and Young. It is one of their most popular songs written sometime in the 1970’s. The song talks about how both elders and youth can teach and learn from each other and learn from each other’s mistakes and successes.
The reason for my thinking about this song is because Jesus is all about teaching. Last week we briefly mentioned the part of the Gospel of John that scholars call Jesus’ “final discourse” or “farewell discourse” (John 14-17). This discourse is the final “teaching” moment that Jesus has with his disciples and other followers on the night he is arrested. Of course, his teaching goes beyond this night as his death and resurrection show us.
Today’s reading from John is often times recited during funerals. The words can be comforting to those who are in the midst of grief. But this lesson is also for the living; words we are to take to heart when times get tough, not only when we suffer the loss of a loved one.
What we hear this day is that even with Jesus leaving (his physical leaving) we will not be left on our own. He promises us that the Counselor, the Holy Spirit, whom God will send in Jesus’ name will always be with us.
And what is the job of the Holy Spirit? It “will teach you all things and will remind you of everything I have said to you” (John 14:26b). So our learning from Jesus, from God, is never going to come to an end. Our ability to continue learning from Christ will always be present. We just have to allow our hearts to be open to it.
And this can be so very hard. Last week, we heard about how Jesus looks at love and acceptance John 13:31-35). These are probably the two most important lessons we must learn from him but they are two of the hardest things we will ever have to do. But if we truly have Christ in our hearts we can accomplish what he asks of us. The way of being able to do this is by accepting the peace of Christ within our hearts and souls and minds.
Jesus left his peace with his disciples that night and also with us. Scripture tells us what he said to his disciples, “Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid” (John 14:27). What does Jesus mean by I do not give as the world gives?
Every week we pass the “peace of Christ” to those worshipping around us, or in our case nearly every member of the congregation. What exactly are we passing on to one another? Is it merely a social event we use to greet each other? Or is there more to it?
I believe that the “peace of Christ” does differ from any peace we can gain from the world. What kind of peace or peace of mind does the world give? Well, the world can give us many things: money, a good job, a loving family, a roof over our heads, healthcare (which I believe should be universal but we’re not quite there yet), transportation of some sort for most people (something we have to keep working on to improve the opportunity for all), etc. You get the picture. We can get many things in our world that will help bring us comfort and peace.
But how much of what we just mentioned is guaranteed for life? None of it, as many people discovered during the recent fiscal and mortgage crisis. Our “peace of mind” from the world can disappear rather quickly (even when we least expect it) and it can take a very long time to recover (so much for gaining peace from the world).
The peace of Christ is different and it can be life changing. Let me use the recent death of my father as an example. When I received the news of how sick my father was with the newly discovered cancer it did take the wind out of my sails but I was not overcome with panic or a sense of drop everything and get on the next plane to Florida.
If my sister had not been able to go down on Sunday April 21, I would have hopped on a plane on Monday. All of my siblings felt it was important for at least one of us to be there to support dad and his wife Marcia. My sister was able to get there and I could make plans for the following week.
I was able to talk with my dad that Saturday and the Sunday my sister got there. He talked about what few options he had and what he wanted to do and not do. He was at peace with what he had decided and so was I. I never questioned him or asked him why he made the choices he made. My sister further updated me about the severity of his cancer and what the outlook was (two months at best).
I was driving to Elyria when she called with the sad news of my dad’s sudden death the next day, Monday afternoon. I was surprised at her news but at the same time I was not. I was not overwhelmed with grief. I did not have to pull off to the side of the road in order to regain my composure. I did make a couple of telephone calls to inform my brothers and my dad’s siblings of his death.
I was feeling a little guilty about not having what most people would call a normal reaction of grief. Was my heart so hard that I could not shed any tears? Was my reaction to my father’s death not really normal?
My good friend Oommen called later that day to express his condolences. We talked about what had happened and I shared with him my feelings about my dad’s death (or my lack of feelings as some might think). He told me not to worry about it. Oommen said what I was feeling and how I was feeling meant I was in a good place.
And you know what? He was right. I was in a good place and my dad was in a good place and we were in this good place together. Don’t get me wrong; I will miss my dad very much. It was strange to visit his home last week and not hug him or hear his voice or see him playing and talking with his cats.
If dad had died twelve or thirteen years ago, I am positive my reaction to his death would have been much different. Back then I still had a lot of regrets and some lingering anger about how my dad divorced my mom. Things weren’t the greatest between us even though they had improved over the years.
It wasn’t until I truly took Christ into my heart that things really began to get better between the two of us. It wasn’t until I accepted the peace that Jesus offers every one of us that my relationship with my dad began to change. Our relationship did not change dramatically overnight; it was a process. I followed what Christ put into my heart and allowed the Holy Spirit to do the legwork.
I believe that is the key to receiving and gaining the peace of Christ: allow him into your heart and allow the Spirit to work not only in you but also in all that goes on around you. The dynamics of your life will change and it can be an eternal change. I am the only one who can take this change away, not the world. It will happen if I take Christ out of my life and out of all that I do.
My dad and I had reached forgiveness with each other and acceptance for what each of us had done throughout our lives. I was far from the perfect son and had a lot of amends to make to him for things I had done in the past. Christ allowed me to do that and over time I felt the forgiveness from my dad.
The peace of Christ changed the dynamics between my dad and myself. Though saddened and stunned by his sudden death, the peace of Christ has filled my heart with joy and comfort.
Jesus did his best to teach his children about his way of life and the changes it could make for them. Hopefully, we too have learned from Him and we will continue to teach our children those same ways. May the peace of Christ be with you all.
Thanks be to God, amen.
Pastor’s note: In looking for an example of how the peace of Christ affected me, I used my relationship with my dad. In expressing how Christ’s peace helped me deal with my grief because of his sudden death, I want to make sure you understand that this is my story and in no way am I saying my dealing with grief is the only way. All people grieve differently, and my prayers are that you find the peace of Christ during your time(s) of grief. Blessings, Rick
