“Do We Dare to Imagine?”
John 3:1-17
When I had just arrived as pastor in
my first church in Long Branch, I was gently pulled into the hallway
by one of the teachers of the pre-school that used our facility during
the week. After she asked some question or another that I don't remember,
she got down to the nitty gritty. “Are you born again?” she asked
me. On the surface, it was a simple question. Jesus says you have to
be born again as it translated in the King James Version. So are you
or not? The same thing happened here after an event one Sunday evening
when we had an outside speaker visit. I had offered a comment that didn't
quite fit with the perspective of the majority of visitors who had come
to hear the speaker. “Pastor, are you born again?” I was asked.
You see, in some circles, “born again” has become a label, and I
believe what these two inquirers really wanted to know was whether I
fit into their particular theological group. They wanted to know whether
I was alright theologically & spiritually or not. Should they go
home and pray that God support my ministry, or should they go home to
pray for my soul. “Are you born again?” They wanted to know.
“Born again” has become a boundary
marker, a theological delimiter of sorts, to define a group, or a person,
or a theological perspective. For some it is a key that opens the door
to the inside of God's kingdom.
This is, I believe, exactly opposite
to the way that Jesus used the phrase when Nicodemus came to visit him
that night long ago. When he arrived at Jesus' doorstep, Nicodemus was
trying to figure out who this stranger was. Nicodemus was a Pharisee,
a leader among the people. He was well educated and respected, sincere
and thoughtful about his faith. In our story, he visits in the dead
of night, cautiously, because many of his colleagues dismissed Jesus
as a charlatan, or worse, a man in league with the devil. Who was this
man who was drawing so many crowds, who was performing mighty signs,
who was turning over tables in the temple courts? He enters into conversation
with Jesus, expecting, perhaps, well worn theological language, or carefully
considered positions on the vital issues of the day. Instead what he
received from Jesus was an invitation to imagine.
Nicodemus comes to Jesus seeking explanations,
explanations of this strange character doing and saying these strange
things. But we very quickly find out, Jesus is not about giving explanations,
Jesus is seeking to foster transformation.
Jesus here, and throughout the gospels
is the provocateur. He tries to tease Nicodemus out of his shell, to
see new things, to perceive new horizons. He invites him to imagine.
Nicodemus may have waited until nightfall to knock on Jesus' door, but
Jesus invites Nicodemus to come out of the darkness and step into the
light of a new day.
Nicodemus, you have to be born from
above! It's a play on words you see. The Greek phrase that Jesus used
could either mean "born from above" or "born again."
Nicodemus, ever the literalist, focuses on the concrete & remains
perplexed. “How can these things be? Jesus, I can't imagine.”
Nicodemus represents that faith, that
perspective that is unwilling or unable to look beneath the surface
of things, the faith that is unwilling to gaze beyond the concrete,
or unable to peek behind the established and provable, or rational.
Nicodemus represents the faith that is bereft of imagination.
But Jesus keeps trying, “Nick! I'm
talking about a different kind
of birth, from above, a birth of the spirit! I'm trying to open your
eyes here (yes, Nick, I know
your eyes are open). I'm not talking about the eyes of your body, but
the eyes of your being.
I am talking about being born of God's
Spirit, the one that opens doors where there are only walls. I am talking
about that divine spirit that senses possibilities where there are only
limitations. Oh Nicodemus are you a teacher of Israel and you do not
understand these things?
You focus on the literal, on the rituals,
on the rules, but those are only a means to an end, they are there to
guide you into a broader reality. They are
there to tease your imagination so that you come to see a transcendent
reality, so that can have a more profound and real experience of God's
love.
God sent his son to lead you, and everyone
else to life. Can you imagine that Nicodemus, eternal life! Like a party
that never runs out if wine, Nick, can you imagine? And God is offering
this life in a way you never saw coming. You can understand it only
if you imagine.”
Imagination is the spark of the Spirit:
it is that sight that looks beyond the immediate to dream. Faithful
imagination then has the boldness to follow that dream. This is precisely
what Jesus is dying to give all of us, faithful imagination!
Think of Abram for a moment, in those
brief 4 verses. Abram was 75 years old. The wind of the Spirit began
to blow, and the voice of God began to stir things up. “Abram, oh
Abram! You're not 75 years old, you're 75 years young! And I have a
plan for you. Can you imagine?”
“What Lord? Leave whom? Go where?
You're gonna do what?”
“Come on, Abram. I know it doesn't
make sense, but I will make of you a great nation. Imagine!”
Nicodemus could not imagine, but Abram
could, and we can.
This is Lent, and Jesus is on a journey
that will end in death. If we are followers of this stranger, then we
are on a journey to death also. If we dare to imagine, we discover that
it is also journey to new life.
Jesus is dying to foster in us renewed
imagination. Jesus wants us to experience the spark of the Spirit that
gives us courage to move beyond our comfort zones, that gives us wisdom
to guide us forward toward new horizons, and that fosters in us the
perspective of live lived in love for one another instead of focused
on the self.
Perhaps you are facing the reality of limitations at this point in your life.
Perhaps you are struggling with the
fact that the options to challenges in your life or in the world are
few to none in number. Perhaps the answers that you need are not there
for you at the moment. This invitation is for you.
Lent, this season that we are in, is
a journey not just to let go of old things, but to imagine new things.
You know what? Funny things happen when
we start to embrace the imagination of the Spirit. Reality follows.
We still might not see the Spirit directly. We still might not be quite
sure where is comes from or where it is going. But when we imagine new
things, we will begin to hear the rustling of the wind through the trees.
We will begin to see snow blowing across the parking lot. We will begin
to feel the breeze on our cheeks. We will know that the Spirit is real,
and active, and is leading us to wholeness.
I was invited to a yoga class. A Friend
swore by it, so I decided to give it a try.
Let me tell you, it was something new
for me. You want me to do what? You want me to sit how? You want me
to put my foot where? It required some imagination on my part, let me
tell you!
The reason I bring this up is because
several times during the class the instructor said something interesting.
As I was trying to contort my body, and find my balance, she told me
where to look to help me balance. “Look up (for one pose).” “Look
at your belly button (for another).” Why? “Because,” she said,
“where you eyes go, your body will follow.”
The same could be said about the imagination
of the Spirit. Where the eyes of our imagination go, there our body
will follow.
Sisters and brothers, our faith doesn't
have all the answers when we would like them. It doesn't remove all
challenges, all sadness, all doubts. But know this also: our faith
doesn't despair at the way things are. Our faith imagines
what can be. It dreams of what God intends, and follows.
In the first service, we sang the song, “Spirit”. I was struck by one of the verses as I sung it this morning:
You call from tomorrow,
You break ancient schemes,
from the bondage of sorrow
the captives dream dreams;
our women see visions,
our men clear their eyes,
with bold new decisions
Your people arise.
Are you open to dream dreams? Are you open to visions? Is God clearing
your eyes? Imagine!
Open our minds and hearts and spirits,
O Lord. Empower us to imagine, and lead
the way. Amen.
February 17, 2008
Rev. Paul Heins
First Presbyterian Church
Logan, Utah