The Unauthorized Homily

By Bill Dunn

A commentary on the Scripture readings from the Sunday Lectionary

(Scripture readings for Sunday, May 16th: Acts 7:55-60; Revelation 22:12-20; John 17:20-26)

JESUS WANTS US TO SHARE OUR FAITH WITH OTHERS

In this week’s gospel reading, Jesus touched on a subject that is kind of awkward for many Christians: talking about our faith with others. The reading is from the 17th chapter of John’s gospel. This chapter is one long prayer Jesus offered on the night He was betrayed. In the first part of the chapter, He prayed for Himself. Next, He prayed for His disciples, those with Him that evening. Finally, in the section we hear this week, Jesus prayed for all believers throughout history.

Jesus looked up to Heaven and said, “Holy Father, I pray…for those who will believe in me through their word, so that they may all be one, as you, Father, are in me and I in you, that they also may be in us, that the world may believe that you sent me.”

Jesus covered a lot of ground here. First and foremost, people must believe in Him. Without faith in Jesus, nothing good can happen. That is the key starting point. But there is much more after this. Jesus wants His followers to be united to Him as closely as He is united to the Father. And since the Father and Son are one-in-being (along with the Holy Spirit, of course), He was not referring to two separate people being side by side; He was talking about one person actually being a part of the other person. This is hard to comprehend when we think about it in only physical, natural terms. If you take two separate physical bodies and try to combine them, it gets rather messy (as some of us discovered in 9th grade biology dissection class when we tried to make two frogs into a single Frankenfrog). But in spiritual terms, it IS possible. Jesus wants His spirit to dwell inside the hearts of His followers.

Another important point revealed by Jesus in this prayer is His desire that the world will believe the Father sent Him, implying that the world also will understand exactly who Jesus is. This is accomplished when Jesus’ followers are united to Him, and united to one another. We haven’t done a very good job of this, considering the many religious wars throughout history, the constant inter-denominational squabbling, and the splinter groups that form on seemingly a daily basis while proclaiming, “We’ve got the REAL truth about Jesus!”

But of all the topics addressed by Jesus in this prayer, the one with the farthest-reaching implication is contained in His phrase, “…those who will believe in me through their word.” Jesus was talking about His followers here, and He makes it clear that people become His followers in the first place by hearing the Gospel message proclaimed by someone else who already believes.

This is called evangelization. It’s called sharing the Good News. St. Paul talked about it in his letter to the Romans. He wrote, “Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord shall be saved. But how are they to call on one in whom they have not believed? And how are they to believe in one of whom they have never heard? And how are they to hear without someone to proclaim him?” (Romans 10:13-14).

Starting with Jesus’ handpicked disciples, the message of salvation through faith in Christ has passed by word-of-mouth down through countless generations, to all corners of the globe for 20 centuries. This is the primary way the Gospel survives: one person comes to believe in Jesus and has his or her life changed as a result, and then tells someone else about the experience.

This is the way Jesus wants the Gospel to spread. He did not say, “I pray…for those who will believe in me through a book.” Or “…through a movie.” Or “…through a TV show.”

And He definitely did not say, “I pray…for those who will believe in me through institutional religious education classes.”

Don’t get me wrong. I think Sunday school lessons and C.C.D. programs and Bible study classes are terrific vehicles for teaching the deeper truths and the numerous details of Christianity. But the basic Gospel message—God is real, He loves us, and we can have eternal life through faith in Jesus—is best taught one-on-one. It is best shared personally and intimately. It’s a parent chatting with a child. It’s two co-workers or friends having a discussion over lunch. It’s the most effective way of proclaiming the Good News, and it’s the way Jesus wants His message spread.

Unfortunately, far too many people think the task of spreading the Gospel is solely for the professionals. They think the clergy and the preachers, since they’re trained and ordained and get paid for it, are the only ones who should be discussing faith issues with others. I know of some folks who believe in Christ—no doubt about that—and for years have faithfully dropped off their kids at C.C.D. classes each week. But these people have never uttered a word about God or spirituality around the house. They simply do not think it’s their place to do so. What kind of message is being sent to the kids? The kids are learning that religious faith is either not very important, or it’s downright embarrassing.

There are two prominent misconceptions about religious faith in today’s culture. The first is that if you don’t know EVERYTHING about the subject, then you shouldn’t say ANYTHING about the subject. (Funny how this does not apply when the topic is politics, or sex, or the economy, or the woeful performance of Red Sox starting pitchers. People who don’t know ANYTHING about these subjects don’t hesitate to pontificate for hours on end.)

When it comes to religious faith, even theologians with doctorate degrees don’t know everything about God; no human being does. But even illiterate people know that God is real, and that He loves us, and that putting your faith in Jesus brings peace and joy to your life. You don’t need a special permit to mention these facts to someone else.

The other misconception is that since religious faith is so intensely personal, we should never discuss the subject with anyone—ever. Well, Jesus didn’t think so. He talked about Heaven, Hell, prayer, eternal life, and spirituality all the time. And He commanded us to do the same.

The real reason many folks are hesitant to talk about faith is Jesus—and trust me, I know from firsthand experience—is a fear of having other people think you’re weird. Well, I’ve got news for you, once you’ve finish offering your views on politics, sex, the economy, and the Red Sox, people already KNOW you’re weird. Anything you say about faith is not going to hurt.

Please give this some thought. Honestly assess your own situation and determine how often, if ever, you share your faith with others. Then ask yourself: what would’ve happened if everyone kept silent about Jesus 2,000 years ago? Christianity would’ve spread no further than downtown Jerusalem and then died out a few months after the Ascension.

Obviously, this is not what Jesus desires. He wants the Good News, the key to eternal life, to spread throughout the world in every generation. And we have to do our part to make it happen. The duty is not just for the professionals.

©2010