GOD CALLS US TO BE ACTIVISTS
Isaiah 58: 6-11
FIRST JOHN 3: 7-21
MARCH 16, 2025
Ah, Happy St. Patrick’s Day … Eve!!! It is the Second Sunday in the season of Lent and we have arrived on another day in this Lenten Journey of hopefully making this Holy Season personal with God and some of you today may recall Bing Crosby singing ‘When Irish Eyes Are Smiling’ in the film “Top o’the Morning” or others singing that song in more than 25 other films “[1]When Irish eyes are smiling; sure tis’ like a morn’ in Spring in the lilt of Irish laughter you can hear the angels sing.”
If you have read through the Gospel of Luke, you know Luke; one of the FOUR GOSPELS in your Bible… that book you are reading in this season of Lent, you will remember another ongoing moment in time that brings joy to the angels. Another moment that I am sure inspires the angels not only to be joyful but also to sing. Jesus, as was often the case during His ministry, spoke amidst a crowd of complaining legal experts and politically focused Pharisees. This time those in power were angry with Jesus because as Luke reports they were saying that and Luke puts this in quotes … these powerful men of Jesus’ time were upset and trying to stir up their crowd of followers by saying, “This man, Jesus, He welcomes sinners and believe it or not He is actually eating with them.”
Can you imagine that … the Son of God, the Savior of the World, the Messiah, the Prince of Peace, Immanuel … Wonderful Counselor, Eternal Father … the babe in the manger whom the shepherds rushed to worship and for whom the GREAT assembly of the heavenly forces joined the the angel who brought the GOOD NEWS to the shepherds about the birth of this child by praising God singing “Glory to God in heaven and on earth PEACE AMONG THOSE HE FAVORS.” Can you imagine those religious leaders …. Politically powerful folks condemning the reality happening before their very eyes of Jesus Christ welcoming sinners and rather than sending them away, transporting them out of His sight and mocking them … Jesus actually sat down and ate with them.
Boy, they were ticked off … they were so mad … they didn’t like anyone who wasn’t exactly like themselves and part of their “in-crowd’ and on an ongoing basis they expressed their anger with Jesus especially when Jesus taught that God expects all humans to love ALL of their neighbors and to love God because they frankly despite their religious titles and regardless of their wealth and power never knew the joy of knowing God much less helping those who were poor and struggling. They were too busy counting their shekels and focusing in on themselves, but Jesus had a message for them time after time and in Luke chapter 15 Jesus gives us a quick reminder as we prepare to celebrate St. Patrick’s Day … He said, “JOY breaks out in the presence of God’s angels over one sinner who changes both heart and life!”
Yep … whether it is a religiously powerful and politically connected Pharisee who had been blind to Jesus’ teaching like Nicodemus or a drug addicted homeless person … when they actively CHANGE BOTH HEART and LIFE there is a CELEBRATION in heaven … a party … JOY BREAKS OUT … over just one person. I wonder which angel is in charge of getting that party rolling … my guess it is a SMILING IRISH ANGEL because “when Irish Eyes are smiling you can hear the angels sing!”
Friends, Scripture is clear … God wants us to-be-activists when it comes to faith, but God also wants us to be filled with joy and praising God in our lives because we know and love and walk humbly with God. When Jesus provides His report about angels partying it is tied to an active CHANGE IN HEART and LIFE not merely a statement that someone has signed up to be a Christian or a church member or even if someone claims to be “born again” but fails to change both their hearts and lives.
In our reading from First John … and I highly recommend reading the Epistles of John as part of your Lenten journey of getting personal with God giving up the world for these 40 days and choosing to align your heart and life with God … with Christ’s teaching … in that reading we are warned about what can cause a disconnect in our relationship with God … with our faith life … we heard, “Little children, make sure that no one deceives you. The person who practices righteousness is righteous in the same way that Jesus is righteous but the person who practices sin BELONGS TO THE DEVIL. The devil’s children are apparent,” Scripture teaches, “they are everyone, the devil’s children, who do not practice righteousness and who do not love any brother or sister.” Don’t be deceived!
John continues focused on activism. … focused on faith … “You have heard from the beginning LOVE EACH OTHER … if someone has material possessions and sees a brother or sister in need but refuses to help — how can the love of God dwell in a person like that. Let’s love with action and truth. This is how WE WILL KNOW THAT WE BELONG to the TRUTH and REASSURE OUR HEARTS in GOD’s PRESENCE.”
And, if we know that through our words and our deeds our hearts are in God’s presence … in our honest personal assessment of what truly matters to us, as individuals, and in knowing how we act … who we connect with … then I would argue we should be celebrating each day with joy when we know as John wrote, when we know that our “hearts don’t condemn us … and we have confidence in our relationship to God” … Shouldn’t we be the most joy-filled people on earth regardless of the challenges of life … despite living amongst modern day Pharisees and others who want to run away from God’s righteousness towards the devil for their own gain and power … I would suggest that we should be reflecting or even singing JOY TO THE WORLD THE LORD HAS COME every single day.
Now, I would argue with the songwriters about when Irish eyes are smiling because I’d suggest surely like a snowy day is when you can hear Irish laughter and the angels sing but as people of faith … people who in this season of Lent truly understand that God expects us to align with God by following Jesus’ teaching … I would think … I would hope … that we’d be reflections of the psalmist who in talking about God’s presence and God’s love for God’s people who take refuge in God … states that they will find joy.
Well, I think St. Patrick said it best when he wrote the words we sang this morning. “Christ beside me, Christ before me, Christ behind me, Christ within me, and Christ above me.” The psalmist wrote, “I always put the Lord in front of me, I will not stumble because He is on my right side …”
And, then friends perhaps the psalmist who is also known as King David from whom Jesus was connected … perhaps David had some Irish in him because he then wrote, “That’s why my heart celebrates and my mood is joyous; yes, my whole body will rest in safety. You, God, make known to me the path of life, in YOUR PRESENCE is a fullness of joy; a total celebration!”
Faith activism … in God’s presence there’s joy … putting the Lord in front of us … Christ besides us … Jesus declared, “Pick up your cross and follow me.” He didn’t say sit back in an easy chair and watch talking heads on television tell you how to think and what side to pick no God and Christ are saying we are to be doers of the word not merely hearers because if we are only hearers of God’s Word James tells us we deceive ourselves. In doing we can find joy … and we can experience the holy.
Isaiah clarifies for us what life to choose and in this season of LENT perhaps the prophet is telling us how to give up the world while getting close and personal with God. “Isn’t this the fast I choose … releasing wicked restraints … untying the ropes of a yoke … SETTING FREE THE MISTREATED … SHARING YOUR BREAD with the HUNGRY … BRINGING THE POOR INTO YOUR HOUSE … COVERING THE NAKED WHEN YOU SEE THEM … then YOUR light will break out like dawn and YOU WILL BE HEALED QUICKLY.”
God isn’t talking about my cancer going away … God isn’t talking about life’s frustrations suddenly vanishing, but God is talking about our relationship with God when we hear about being healed quickly. And, that should be a cause for joy!
Paul wrote to the Roman church, “May the God of hope fill YOU will all joy and peace AS YOU TRUST IN GOD.” Faith activism … not a magic trick but a response from us to ACT as people of faith … In First Peter the constant reflection of what our relationship with God needs to be … in picking up the CROSS and following Jesus and being activists … he writes, “Though you have not seen Him, you love Him and YOU REJOICE with joy that is inexpressible and full of glory!”
We each should have already caused a heavenly celebration … we each need to allow the Lord God to guide us even, as Isaiah reports, in parched places. We have an opportunity to be God’s people by allowing the Holy Spirit to be our guide and both receiving and living as a reflection of our faith … by showcasing the fruits of the Spirit which begins with love but continues with joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self control. Not being arrogant or making each other angry.”
If we make that decision …. God will say, “I am here. If you remove the yoke from among you … the finger-pointing, the wicked speech, if you open your heart to the hungry and provide abundantly for those who are afflicted, your light will shine in the darkness.”
I discovered the song that’s been in more movies than any other song … it wasn’t ’When Irish Eyes are Smiling.” It is “Spirit in the Sky” … “When I die and they lay me to rest … gonna go to the place that’s best. I got a friend in Jesus so you know that when I die … He’s gonna send me up with the Spirit in the sky … I’m gonna to to the place that’s the best!” If you have changed your heart and your mind and aligned with Christ … the message of that song that is in more movies than any other should have you smiling today … you made the angels party away and sing! AMEN