Readings for the Day:
Sermon:
Last week, we celebrated the many saints who have been examples for us,
pointing to Jesus Christ. There's one of those saints whose life connects quite
beautifully with our Gospel today.
Her name is Julian of Norwich. She was a woman who lived in Norwich,
England in the 1300s. The Middle Ages.
Now Julian, like many people in her day and age, got deathly ill. Literally
deathly. She was in great pain and suffering. And she thought that there would be
no end to her suffering. That her story would soon be ending. That the world, her
world, was ending. That the only thing that would end the pain, the suffering, the
illness would be her death.
And it was in the midst of her suffering, as she was receiving final rites from her
priest, she received an image. She saw Christ Jesus on the cross, reaching out to
her as blood from His wounds dripped down on her. And His blood not only
revived her spirits. It revived her body as well. Though she thought death would
come to her soon, that all was over, she found herself healed and renewed. In
fact, it she would have many more years to come after her experience. She lived
somewhere between 30-40 years after her near miss with death. Enough time to
write a book about her experiences and then some.
And out of her hardships, one of the great sayings Julian of Norwich has to offer
us is this: "All will be well. All will be well. And all manner of things, all will be
well."
That idea that we can still hope even in what seems to be the worst of struggles
can also be found in Jesus' teaching in the Gospel according to Luke this
morning. And that hope for Julian as well as in the Gospel can only be there if it
is founded in Jesus.
Like with Julian, in the Gospel we see the fear that all will come to an end for us.
But this end is not from certain death, but from the end times. The end of the
world.
And there doesn't seem to be a lot of hope in what Jesus says. He says many
things must happen before the end of the world, but before they occur, he tells
his disciples, they will be arrested and persecuted and brought before judges for following in Jesus' name. There are grave and dire situations ahead for them.
There is a great deal for the disciples to fear in following the path that Jesus lays
before them.
But even in the midst of imprisonment, slander, and mistreatment, Jesus tells
them there is hope. There is hope because Jesus will still be there. Right in the
midst of them.
As He tells the disciples. "So make up your minds not to prepare your defense in
advance; for I will give you words and a wisdom that none of your opponents
will be able to withstand or contradict."
Even in the worst of our sufferings when, as Jesus says, we will be betrayed by
our families and those who love us. Even when we may be put to death. Even
when we are hated for loving Him. In all of those moments, Jesus will be there
with us. Guiding us. Helping us.
And in the end, though even death may come for us, Jesus tells us that "not a hair
of your head will perish." And "by your endurance you will gain your souls."
Just like the blood of Jesus that healed Julian of Norwich, we are made whole
and restored by Jesus' presence with us. Even though we don't always know He
is there. Because He is there to help guide and comfort us. Even when we don't
know it. Even if we don't always see Him.
"All will be well. All will be well. And in all manner of things, all will be well."
These are words we constantly need to hear in our lives. Because it is hard when we face difficult times in our lives. For many of us, these are times when we don't have faith. Instead, they are times when we freak out and panic over what seems to be the actual end of the world. At these times, it is hard to feel that we have anything to hold on to.
But as we hear in the Gospel, and in the story of Julian, we have a great deal to hope for. Even when all seems lost. Because Jesus is there with us. And as long as He is there, no matter what may happen, even the worst of the worst, no true harm will come. Though we suffer unimaginable things, Jesus will still be there in the midst of that pain with us.
As long as we set our hope on Christ Jesus, we will be able to say "All will be well." Even in the darkest of times. Even when it seems that all is lost, or that the world is ending. And for that hope that comes from Jesus Christ and from Him alone, we can true say, thanks be to God!
"All will be well. All will be well. And in all manner of things, all will be well."
These are words we constantly need to hear in our lives. Because it is hard when we face difficult times in our lives. For many of us, these are times when we don't have faith. Instead, they are times when we freak out and panic over what seems to be the actual end of the world. At these times, it is hard to feel that we have anything to hold on to.
But as we hear in the Gospel, and in the story of Julian, we have a great deal to hope for. Even when all seems lost. Because Jesus is there with us. And as long as He is there, no matter what may happen, even the worst of the worst, no true harm will come. Though we suffer unimaginable things, Jesus will still be there in the midst of that pain with us.
As long as we set our hope on Christ Jesus, we will be able to say "All will be well." Even in the darkest of times. Even when it seems that all is lost, or that the world is ending. And for that hope that comes from Jesus Christ and from Him alone, we can true say, thanks be to God!