The Lord of All Ages

2 Samuel 23:1-7; Revelation 1:4b-8; John 18:33-37

Is there anyone among us over the age of 30 who hasn't, from time to time, looked back upon our past and sighed, "Aaah, the good old days!"? The funny thing about this is that "the good old days" can mean just about anything you want it to mean, depending upon how you look at it. For example, times that were seemed pretty bad when we were going through them ten or twenty years ago may actually seem pretty good as we look back at those days from a present time that has perplexing problems of its own.

I remember my mom using this phrase back when I was a kid. Faced with the difficult challenges of the fifties and sixties, she would look back upon her childhood in the 20's and 30's and sigh, "Aaah, the good old days!" as though they were the epoch of American life. Never mind that back when my Mom was a kid there was a pretty bad depression going on with millions of persons unable to find work and thousands upon thousands of folks were losing their farms to bankruptcy! Never mind that those supposedly "good old days" were actually a time when children died of polio and diphtheria and measles and scarlet fever and infections because neither vaccines nor antibiotics had been invented! Never mind that those supposedly "good old days" that my mother sighed about was the hey day of guys like Al Capone and Baby Face Nelson and Bonnie and Clyde and dozens of other mobsters running loose while the police seemed to be helpless to do anything about them. Never mind that those supposed good old days represented a time when a lot of persons, especially those living in the country, still didn't have indoor plumbing or electricity. Still, as far as my mom was concerned, those were the good old days.

It is funny how our memory plays tricks on us. We forget the bad things and remember the good. But, in the process we create a mythical kind of utopia that never was. But, you know, instead of wishing for some mythical, never-were, "good old days," Christians should be celebrating the fact that we are living in precisely that moment in history in which God has chosen us to live and love and act. We can know this and proclaim it boldly because of the reminder we hear today in our scripture reading from John's Revelation: "'I am the Alpha and the Omega," says the Lord God, who is and who was and who is to come, the Almighty."

This scripture passage tells us that it is not necessary, even not advisable, for us to long for "the good old days," because God is acting in our world today because God is! We are called to minister with enthusiasm in "this present age, our calling to fulfill" because the spirit of God is as vitally present today as it was in the "good old days" or as it will be in the astounding apocalyptic future that John's book of Revelation foresees.

This is what was meant when Christ was described as saying, "I am the Alpha and the Omega." Using the first and last letter of the Greek alphabet, the writer of the book of Revelation was trying to point out that Christ comprises the beginning and the end as well as everything in between. Ironically, the Hebrew people used to describe God as "the Aleph and the Tav," for these two letters are the first and the last letters of the Hebrew Alphabet. What is interesting is that in Hebrew the word for truth is the word "emet," which is spelled "Aleph, Mem, Tav" ( ), a combination of the first, the middle, and the last letters of the Hebrew alphabet. In truth, God is always with us! God was, is and will be!

So, let's take a closer look at this concept of God, the One who was. Certainly, when we are somewhat dissatisfied with the way things are going in our present day, we may turn our thoughts to the way things used to be and even yearn for the God of the "good old days." We like to recall the God of ages past as that "on-the-spot" Deity who brought the Hebrews out of Egypt, or who helped the Israelites clear the Promised Land of Hittites, Canaanites and Philistines. This is the God who turned up the volume on Joshua's trumpets at Jericho and who helped David which 13 disorganized and loosely related tribes into the proud nation of Israel.

But, as we recall that God of the "good old days" we need to remember that even those who lived in the service of this"one who was" longed for the "good old days," themselves. It was the Israelites, after all, who while fleeing through the wilderness also longed for the security that they "enjoyed" while living as slaves in Egypt. And it was Job, after all, who because of an unexpected test and unforeseen trials cried out, "Why are times not kept by the Almighty, and why do those who know him never see his day?" And it was Habakkuk, who while suffering under the abuse of the Babylonians, asked of God, "Are you not from of old, O Lord, my God, my Holy One?" Yet as we stand here two or three thousand years later, how much easier it is for us to see "the God who was" standing beside Israel, Job, and Habakkuk! How much easier it is for us to remember that God, indeed, was at their side even while they were wishing for a return of the God of the good old days! And how quickly we forget that God is with us, today, as well!

God, is certainly the One who is! The apostle Paul recognized this very well when he told the Corinthians, "See, now is the acceptable time; see, now is the day of salvation."

Many of us have been amazed over the past year or so, and even in the past months, concerning reports of persons who have evidently forgotten this important message from Paul. The Branch Davidians, as an example, were so sure that God's day of salvation was coming at them from the future that they were willing to kill themselves and their children while the world watched in horror. And then there was that cult group in Switzerland who did the same thing a month or so ago. They pinned all their hopes on a God that would save them in the future that they lost all hope for the present. How important it is for all of us to remember that now is the acceptable time for God to be acting and moving in our world and in our lives!

But, the question is, "How can we claim for God the time we live in and not be afraid of it or long for some "good old days?" or "pin our hopes on an apocalyptic event in the future?" We need to let God be present in this time by claiming each facet of this world for God, not abandoning it to the demons of greed, poverty, violence, neglect, abuse, pollution and despair. And the only way we can do this is by being active in the world. We must avoid the temptation to turn our backs upon the needs of others. We must be engaged in the battles going on around us against hunger, and abuse, and apathy, and violence, and poverty.

Perhaps one of the things that challenges us in this present day is our inability to know the truth. We live in a pluralistic time. We even belong to a church which is relatively pluralistic. But never should we allow use pluralism to blind us to a pursuit of the truth. Perhaps you have heard this poem about some blind men who came upon an elephant:

It was six men of Hindostan,

To learning much inclined,

Who went to see the Elephant,

(Though all of them were blind):

That each by observation

Might satisfy his mind.

The first approached the Elephant,

And happening to fall

Against his broad and sturdy side,

At once began to brawl:

"Bless me, it seems the Elephant,

Is very like a wall."

The second, feeling of his tusk,

Cried, "Ho! what have we here

So very round and smooth and sharp?

This wonder of an Elephant

Is very like a spear."

The third approached the animal,

And happening to take

The squirming trunk within his hands,

Then boldly up and spake:

"I see," quoth he, "the Elephant

Is very like a snake."

And so these men of Hindostan

Disputed loud and long,

Each in his opinion

Exceeding stiff and strong,

Though each was partly in the right

And all were in the wrong.

While this poem teaches the virtues of our accepting each other's differing opinions about the same thing, we must never forget that if pluralism is taken to an extreme it can ultimately lead to self- destruction. While pluralism in our society may be good, there is also the potential danger of losing our identity as we lose sight of the importance of the pursuit of truth.

But, not only is God the One of was; and not only is God the One who is; but God is also the One who is to come. This Sunday is known by the Church as the Sunday of "Christ the King." It is on this particular Sunday that Christians have historically affirmed the messianic kingship of Christ over all persons, all nations, all times, and over all the universe. Christ, the ruler over all, assured his future kingdom through his death and resurrection. Christ, through his blood, assured our future in the presence of God.

Because God is yet to come, today makes a difference. Because God is yet to come, all the saints who have gone before us have made a difference. Because God is yet to come, the way we "live and breathe and have our being" makes a difference.

So, the question we should be asking this morning is "How are we making a difference?" Are you making a difference? Are you incarnating the God who is, who was, and who is to come, in this age, and in your life, today? As you look at your community, are you involved in it in a positive way to make a difference, or do you just sit there and complain? As you look at your church, are you involved in it in a way so as to make it better, are you adding to its ministry, or do you ridicule those who are trying? As you relate to your family, do you strive to bring God's grace into the lives of your loved ones, or do you constantly remind them of their failures?

There is some advice that we need to keep in mind as we strive to serve God:

Let God be God ... in you.

Let God be God ... in your church.

Let God be God ... in your neighborhood.

Let God be God ... in your job.

Let God be God ... in your family.

Let God be God ... in your world.

Will you let go and let God be God in you? If you won't, God can't. But, If you will, God can.

Amen.