May 23, 2004; The Seventh Sunday of Easter Readings: Acts 16:16-34; Revelation 22:12-14, 16-17, 20; John 17:20-26; Psalm 47.   The Rev. Dr. Hilary B. Smith Come, Lord Jesus Come, Lord Jesus. The words from Revelation echo through the years. The words have been prayed many times. Come, Lord Jesus and take away the pain. Take away the hatred and violence. Take away the poverty and the suffering. Take away our division and our loneliness. Bring us that which we seem so unable to produce on own. Bring us peace and unity. Bring us together. Come, Lord Jesus and save us. When the book of Revelation was written, many thought that the second coming was near. Since that time, various Christian groups/cults have based their communal lives on the idea that Jesus is coming any minute. Why do people join such groups? The idea is appealing for obvious reasons. The world is a dangerous place with little unity. For those who believe that Jesus will come and change our reality in an instant, the harsh realities of our present are perhaps less troubling. In fact, some see in wars and disunity the necessary prelude to Jesus’ coming again. We proclaim that Christ is risen and that therefore life is made new. Yet, we pray in every service that God’s kingdom will come. The life of faith can sometimes seem inconsistent. In a Bible study curriculum that we are using—Living the Good News—the point is made that even as we read the words of the Gospel this morning that speak of unity, "events that contradict them are occurring simultaneously." We hear the news and we are confronted with reality. "Sometimes the contrast between the word we hear on Sunday and the world we face on Monday is almost too harsh to bear. Does the truth lie in the beautiful message or in the brutal fact? Can the apparent polarities ever be reconciled?" (Scripture Journal for Adults, Episcopal, Spring 2004, Year C, Denver: Living the Good News a division of The Morehouse Group, pp.75-76.) Where does the truth lie? We live in the tension. The answer is both are true—the message is beautiful and the facts are brutal. The word that I hope you receive here every Sunday is a word of grace. Knowing that God cares for you and seeks to give you freedom to live life without fear, does not make all the bad things go away. We live with an experience of God’s love given to us. We know that God seeks to give this love to all and bring all people into unity. We pray that God’s kingdom will come. We have a role in its coming. Every time that we act in loving and caring ways, we make a difference. The kindness that we share with each other here, is the fuel for our work in the world. Yes, there are polarities. In today’s reading from Acts, we are given an account of how powerful those polarities can be and how they can be used by God. Paul and Silas were about their work on behalf of the Gospel. A slave girl followed them—Paul was annoyed by her. Paul heals her, which results in the end of her ability to tell fortunes. The owners of the slave girl are angered because their ability to use the girl for their benefit is gone. There is conflict between Paul’s action to bring release and the way of the world that desires the exploitation of a person for money. Yes, there are polarities. Paul and Silas are arrested, beaten and put in jail. The Good News proclaimed does not always make Christians popular with those in authority. Paul and Silas are in prison, and yet they pray and sing hymns. In this way, these disciples are living the good news even while the whole world does not yet experience it. We are much like Paul and Silas. We are invited to live the risen life now. They are comforted and strengthened to face the reality of life. Sometimes people accuse Christians, and people of other faiths, of being disconnected from reality. Far from it. Our sense of God’s love, mercy, justice—God’s desire for our unity and peace in our world, makes us all the more aware of the harsh realities. But what is it that guides us—the brutal facts or the beautiful message? Paul and Silas had a chance to escape, but they knew that the guard would be killed for letting them escape. So, they do not leave, and their decision to follow the beautiful message makes all the difference. The jailer and his family came to believe and were baptized. The trouble in our world gives us multiple opportunities to proclaim the good news of God in Christ. We can be completely wise to the ways of life and aware of the trouble that harms the human family, while also rejoicing in all that God has already done for us and our world. We will pray today that God’s kingdom will come, and in our acts of worship we make manifest that kingdom amid the troubles of the world. Come, Lord Jesus. What a great prayer. It is a prayer of the heart. Come, Lord Jesus abide with us. Take away all that divides. Bring us into your presence where we can know your peace. Bring us to a place of hope for our world through our confidence in you. Amen.