One sabbath Jesus was going through the cornfields; and as they made their way his disciples began to pluck heads of grain. The Pharisees said to him, ‘Look, why are they doing what is not lawful on the sabbath?’ Mark 2:23-24

We live in close proximity to small Jewish enclave. It is easy to forget this even though the community’s school is only about a block away from our place. However, the Jewish community has learned to live discreetly for justifiable reasons. We know their history. Not even in this country they are spared from hatred. They have to learn to walk quietly and silently in our midst, except on Saturdays. On this special day, they make themselves known to the world. We see them gallantly dressed in their traditional garments walking to the synagogues in small groups with little delightful children running around cheerfully. The men wear extraordinary furry hats which I am sure have a special name. They look a little out of place in this seemingly tropical climate but still they do not fail to bestow a sense of dignity to these men. Their strict observance of the Sabbath requires them to refrain from driving nor staying in their homes. They are forced to engage with the world. They put aside all their fears and apprehensions and display proudly to the world that they are here present in this world because of their special vocation. They are elected to be part of something glorious. Most of us gaze at them with fascination and perhaps with a little envy. They belong to a special community which has withstood a long history of hardship and marginalization. On Sabbath, they proudly display their unique identity. The Sabbath is their weekly celebration of their special vocation.

It is safe to say that most of us born outside the Jewish faith can not truly appreciate the importance of Sabbath. Perhaps, we should refrain from judging the Pharisees rashly when it comes to this issue. They were defending something which was essential to their Jewish identity. We can appreciate this. People fight wars and willingly die to defend their national or tribal identity. We vote for leaders if they promise to keep us from losing track of who we are. Many terrible leaders were elected due to this. The Pharisees, in many ways, were just like us. They were zealous about protecting what they thought was essential to their identity.

The observance of Sabbath is about their identity as God’s chosen people. They were determined to protect this zealously. Nothing which would jeopardize the observance of this day was permitted. In the gospel reading, they were upset when the disciples plucked the grains of wheat for food on this holy day. It may appear to us as if they were extremely nit picky. In reality, they were being very moderate. The Old Testament, the Book of Numbers more precisely, tells us a tragic tale where a man gathered some sticks on the Sabbath and he was put to death for it (Numbers 15:32-36). The Bible tells us that God commanded the people to stone the man. The people were a little hesitant but they had to obey the order from God. It seems like God is on the same page as the Pharisees and Jesus is really the trouble maker.

I think I just walked into a very tricky maze and now I have to find a way out. However, it is necessary for us to face this apparent contradiction in the Bible. It appears like Jesus is setting Himself against the Old Testament. At the same time, He claimed that He did not come to do away with the Law but to fulfill it. Our Lord is quite complicated. He does not make it easy for the Pharisees, nor for us. The Bible is not for amateurs. We need to have courage to face these hard questions. We have to be courageous to listen to the voice of Jesus and look back into the past with a critical attitude. Jesus is not doing away with the past. He is redefining it. The Law was interpreted with an imperfect understanding of God and now Jesus is presenting us with a bold argument. He is claiming to give us a true understanding of God. We can see why this would greatly annoy the religious authorities of His time.

The people of Israel looked at the Law as a tool for separating themselves from the rest of the world. They refused to engage in the world around them. They shun away from those who did not share their identity. Those who did not conform to the requirements of their vocation were considered impure at best or dead at worse. This is not the message of the gospel. There are many who preach this message but it is not one in accordance with the ministry and life of our Lord.

Our Lord did not preach a message to make us cower and hide from the world. He gave us a vocation to separate ourselves from the world so that we can engage with the world in a way to bring forth healing;

 “Whoever drinks the water I give them will never thirst. Indeed, the water I give them will become in them a spring of water welling up to eternal life.” John 4:14

Eternal life is not life after death but living our lives fully and completely in the present reality. It is seeing the reality and beauty of God’s love in every given situation. It is the hope of humanity to see something creative and life-giving springing forth from this chaotic world.

The Pharisees were so obsessed with their identity as an elected people that they forget the true purpose of their vocation. It was not to exalt themselves but it was for them to become a life giving force in this world. We cannot be a life giving force if we are not present in the world. We cannot be a spring of eternal water if we hide and cower from the world. However, we still need to be separated or set aside. We are not to be in the world using its tools to proclaim the reality of eternal life. We are to be separated from the world to be like our Lord. He is the Lord of our Sabbath. He is our identity but not our role model. We usually pick and choose what we want from our role models but we live our lives in Jesus. We contemplate His actions and interpret them to live them out in our given situation. We seek to understand how to bring His healing Love to those around us. In other words, we make Jesus our Sabbath. It is not about a day but living our lives according to a Person. It is about taking time to remind ourselves that we have a vocation in this world. This vocation is to allow Jesus to open our eyes and ears to perceive the world as He perceives. It requires much of our time, more than just a day. It is a lifestyle.

Jesus lived in this world to serve and heal. He served and healed without reservation. He brought hope and joy to the people. The Sabbath of the Pharisees was oppressive and death producing. Well, what about the complicated story in the Old Testament? The Bible is a story of humanity’s growing understanding of God. It shows how imperfect nature could never fully grasp the goodness and love of God. Many people want God to be a tyrant and tell them what to do. A tyrannical God always commits atrocious acts. Many Christians past and present prefer this kind of God. However, the Lord of the Sabbath calls us to separate ourselves and contemplate on God who is life giving. God who wants to use Sabbath to renew our strength and gives us the courage to face the chaos and trouble in the world and be transformed into springs of eternal water. Sabbath is about living Life and living it to the fullness. Only the Lord of the Sabbath can help us achieve this. He is the fountain of our Life. Let us drink from it daily.

When the Spirit of truth comes, he will guide you into all the truth; for he will not speak on his own, but will speak whatever he hears, and he will declare to you the things that are to come. He will glorify me, because he will take what is mine and declare it to you. John 16:13-14

It is Pentecost Sunday! The Day of the Holy Spirit. Sometimes in the New Testament, the apostles refer to this same Spirit as the Spirit of Jesus. According to the gospel of John, Jesus said that The Holy Spirit would come to reveal the nature and ministry of Jesus to the world.

We are accustomed to this idea and accept it without any question. Most of us have heard these teachings since we were young. Maybe we do not realize how all this is very confusing. All it takes is a clever atheist to point this out to us.

Jesus was in the flesh and blood here on earth. Then He died on the Cross. His disciples believed everything had ended with his death. We know the story. Then He rose from the dead. Death was no longer an obstacle. He overcame the greatest enemy of all living things. At this point, the disciples must have been relieved. Their Lord was back with them again. Unfortunately, He left them once more in a very dramatic fashion and this time for good. We have a feast day for this in our liturgical calendar. Sometimes this day passes by so quickly and quietly that we do not have time to think about it. It is the Feast of the Ascension. We say it in our Creed. He ascended into the heavens and is seated at the right hand of the Father. Jesus claimed that it was necessary for him to leave, so that the Holy Spirit could come and teach about Him. However, He was there in person. He could have stayed and cleared up many things. Maybe He could have remained and helped organize the church. Then the church would not have spilt over organizational issues. It could have saved years of fighting against heresy. Not to mention, the witch hunts etc. However, this was not the plan of the gospel. Apparently it was necessary for Jesus to ascend into the heavens because Jesus is the savior of the world. He does not belong to the church. He belongs to the world.

Some of you might already know this; Muslims also believe that Jesus ascended into the heavens. They also believe that He will return. However, they have a logical explanation for why Jesus ascended. In Islamic teachings, Jesus was not crucified. Some other person suffered that fate by mistake or rather, God created a confusion among His persecutors and the wrong person was apprehended. Then Jesus ascended into heavens to escape these wicked people. Obviously, this is not the Christian doctrine. Jesus, according to the gospels, never runs away from the world. He confronted and challenged the world. He never allowed the world to dictate His actions. He never allowed the circumstances and situations to influence His decisions. He stood above this world.

When the gospel tells us Jesus ascended to the heavens, there is an important message communicated here. Some preachers like to jump right to the Second Coming whenever the ascension is mentioned. However, we have a liturgical season dedicated to this subject. It is the season of Advent. The Feast of Ascension tells a different story. Jesus ascended to the heavens to liberate us. He wanted to liberate the early disciples from their limited views of the Saviour. The first Christians were Jewish. They had a Jewish idea of the Messiah. They believed that Jesus came strictly for the Jewish nation and therefore, it was important that He was physically present on the land of the Jewish nation. In their thinking, only their nation was relevant and the ministry of the Messiah was limited to their nation.

They could not fathom the relevance of the life and ministry of Jesus beyond their tiny community. When Jesus ascended to the heavens, He revealed that He was not restricted to one nation. He belonged to all people who sought something eternal in the midst of all things temporal. In each country, people believed that they would find this something. The Jewish people sought for the Messiah. In India, this messianic figure can be identified with Krishna in some circles. Then, there is Buddha. I am sure that there are many more who seek for something or someone whose message is eternal and life giving. Many of them look towards the heavens for the answer. For the ancients, the heavens are where eternal answers are found. There are vestiges of this conviction still present in modern people. In almost very big city, you will find people trying construct the tallest building in the world. They do it to draw attention to themselves. They are convinced that their attempt to reach the skies will prove their relevance to the rest of the world. Jesus did not construct a tower to reach the heavens. He was taken up. He belongs to the heavens. He stays there as a symbol and standard for all peoples. No doubt, many do not want Him to be there. They would rather have their symbols of power to dominate the skies.

Recently, someone asked me if our church believes in the rapture. The modern Anglican church is so diverse and complex that it is impossible to speak for it as a whole. Historically speaking, the church did not believe in it. Not just our church but almost all the historic churches. We preach a gospel of life. The doctrine of rapture is about escaping trial and tribulations in some cases or even leaving this world. However, trials and tribulations are part of life. Jesus faced trials and tribulations and brought forth something new and everlasting from them. The followers of Jesus should not seek to escape troubles nor sufferings. We look to the sky and see a Lord who faced all the chaos and troubles the world threw at Him. He endured hatred and bitterness and He responded with Love. He ascended to the heavens without any resentment towards those who murdered Him. He was free from all the things which restrict our lives here on earth. He revealed that His Life is the Way for all peoples because all peoples, regardless of their culture, religion and nation, want to be liberated from their restricted world dominated by hatred and resentment.

The salvation of Jesus liberates our hearts and minds. It frees us from the restrictive mindset of this world. It liberates us from looking through the eyes of nihilism and hopelessness. Jesus creates life and a new order in the midst of chaos. He went to the skies to let us know that He is giving us this power and authority to follow in His footsteps. Most importantly, He is lifted up unto the heavens to be the standard for all people. He is the standard for us to live a life in harmony with God. He is the way we can discover true and abundant life. He is the Truth which will overcome ignorance and hatred where it is spreading like a deadly disease in this world. He is a high standard. There is a temptation for us to look to others who have lower standards and claim access to the heavens. Usually the signs of these false messiahs are clear. Their attempts always result in confusion and lies.

Jesus is there high up in the heavens. He is not there to help us escape reality. He is there to remind us that it is possible to conquer the chaos surrounding us. However, we need to help. This is why we have this special day. The Day of the Holy Spirit. It is a Spirit who liberates us from ourselves. It liberates us from our restrictive mindset. The Holy Spirit came to enrich our lives and open doors for us to listen and understand others who seek something more concrete and real in this disordered world. It is a Spirit giving us the courage to say Yes to life and No to nihilism and death. Most importantly, it is the Spirit who gives us the power to recognize the Presence of Jesus transforming us to become more like Him. This is what is means to be spirit filled. We become more like Jesus and confront this world without fear nor resentment. We engage in this world without being drawn into its web of hatred and discord. The Holy Spirit is here to transform us. However, not everyone waits on this Spirit. Many would rather keep Jesus in the closet somewhere and take Him out whenever they need Him and then hide Him away. This Jesus does not exist. Only those who have the courage to look up to see Jesus ascended into the heavens will welcome the Holy Spirit to transform them to become like Him. Therefore, let us look up to the One and Only Saviour exalted in the heavens to learn how to live our lives fully engaged in this world. Let us receive His Holy Spirit giving us the power and wisdom to do this in His Holy Name.

“This is my commandment, that you love one another as I have loved you. Greater love has no one than this: to lay down one’s life for one’s friends. You are my friends if you do what I command. I no longer call you servants, because a servant does not know his master’s business. Instead, I have called you friends, for everything that I learned from my Father I have made known to you. You did not choose me, but I chose you and appointed you so that you might go and bear fruit—fruit that will last—and so that whatever you ask in my name the Father will give you. This is my command: Love each other.” John 15:12-17

Perhaps most of us should find these verses disturbing. Surely they are difficult words for us to accept. Maybe we are so mesmerized by their beauty and familiarity that we overlook their controversial nature. Sometimes I have heard preachers talk about God’s friendship with us and they forget to mention that friendship is a two way street. It is great to have a friend like Jesus. However, Jesus tells us that we are to become a friend like Him. He laid down His life for his friends and we should do the same.

Surely this is too much for most of us. We can understand dying for our family members. Many times I have heard people say that they will defend their families to death. They believe that this makes them sound noble. However, Jesus, on the other hand, said some controversial things in regards to our families.

“If anyone comes to Me and does not hate his own father, mother, wife, children, brothers, sisters, yes, and even his own life, he cannot be My disciple.” Luke 14: 26

He speaks about our blood relations in the negative but He extols friendship. He teaches us that the truest expression of love is when we lay down our lives for our friends. However, why just friends? Why not for a noble cause? In Jesus’ time, there were zealots who willingly sacrificed their lives for their nation. They would have loved it if Jesus had said that greatest love is to lay one’s life for a grand cause or something to that effect. He didn’t. He said friends.

We use many different words to describe the nature of our relationship with each other. We have work colleagues, club members, church friends and the list goes on. Many times these words limit the nature of our relationships. We say that these people are our friends only in a given context. Beyond this context, the friendship tends to lose its intensity. For most people, if they are willing to admit it, friendship is not a necessity. It is almost like a cordial way of dealing with people whom we need to be with for a determined period. This is true for most people who are well adjusted in this world. They conform to all the given roles in society. Every one has their allocated space and time. Therefore, the words of Jesus in this and almost every societal context go against the cultural norms. They set themself against the values of this world. They invite us to look at the person to whom we have no social obligation and open ourselves to them. Jesus makes it even more complicated. He implies that our understanding of salvation is dependent on it.

For those who find themselves lost in this world, friendships are the only anchor to ensure them a place in reality. In other words, the words of Jesus are gospel only to those who are disillusioned with the values of this world.

Our homeless youth would not find the words of Jesus so controversial. However, this does not mean that they would willingly die for each other. This would be sheer nonsense for them. They wouldn’t have any qualms saying this directly to each other. However, their bond of friendship is deeper than most people in society. They need each other for survival. At night, our youth sleep in groups and they need the tactile presence of each other to make them feel safe and secure. For them, their homes and families are the source of traumas and their friends are part of the healing process. I think this is perhaps true for many people reading this too. However, our homeless children and youth are allowed to admit this. Many who live so-called regular lives are restricted from admitting this due to social pressures. However, Jesus is only interested in the Truth which liberates our souls from falsehood.

Our children might understand the importance and relevance of friendship but this does not mean that they would find the words of Jesus easy. They still pose a challenge. They require us to lay down our lives for our friends, something which our homeless youth would consider ridiculous no matter how much they love their friends. I am sure that this reflects the honest sentiments of many. Before we ignore these words because of their difficulty, we should consider trying to break this down to something small and simple which is doable on a daily basis. Instead, of laying down our lives, we should consider the words, “dying to oneself”.

In today’s world, we are bombarded with technology and items which cater to our desires. There are countless opportunities to isolate ourselves from the rest of the world. Today people don’t even need to leave their living room to find a romantic partner. I think the point is clear and I don’t have to labour on it. In this context, “dying to ourselves” means simply making the time to be with someone else. It is coming out of our isolated shells and making time for others. People have isolated themselves so much that they became ill both physically and emotionally. They need friends to heal their souls. They need people who are willing to die to themselves and make time to reach out to them.

We meet the youth every day at the same spot and this time, maybe because of the years we spent with them, they come looking for us. Almost everyday at the same time, they drop everything they are doing and join us at our spot. Usually we sit on the ground and talk with them and eventually we end up with a game of Uno. Recently, we noticed a group of Chinese immigrants who work in the restaurants joining us at this time. They don’t really participate in our activities but they sit and observe our interactions. We have become their coffee break activity. The youth noticed them and they liked it. There are also some street cleaners who observe us from a distance. Sometimes they inform us where the young people are when we arrive there. At other times, random people stop and make comments and just sit and watch our interactions with each one. Just recently, we were playing a game and a young man came up to us and asked us if he could play as well. We were taken aback at first but our homeless youth made some space for him to sit. He played with us and told us that he was baker and was in-between jobs. He sat and interacted with us. The youth treated him well. He played with us until it was time for him to go to his new job. Maybe he needed to participate in something calm and soothing before embarking on this new phase in his life.

I have to say something which makes us feel delightfully happy. There is a deeper and stronger bond of friendship between us and the youth. It is so strong that others are taking notice of it. It is not a one way friendship. The youth enrich our lives, they make time for us. We make time for them. People around us are making time to be with us in the heart of a busy city where people are constantly being isolated from each other. A group of homeless youth are drawing the attention of the people. The amazing thing is that they don’t see them as a group of homeless young people but friends having a good and healthy time with each other. Many don’t realize it whenever they see us together but I am sure they sense it in their souls. In the midst of our card games and conversations, Jesus is the center of all. Maybe it is this presence which gives them the courage to approach us. He is the one who unites us and overcomes all social and cultural barriers. The youth opened themselves to us and we open ourselves to them. Now, complete strangers are beginning to open themselves to us. This is the gospel. This is why Jesus said it is important to lay down our lives for our friends. In our reality, it simply means giving each other our time.