Can Angels Fly?

Philippians 4:4-13

Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, Rejoice. Let your gentleness be known to everyone. The Lord is near. Do not worry about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.

Finally, beloved, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is pleasing, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence and if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things. Keep on doing the things that you have learned and received and heard and seen in me, and the God of peace will be with you.

I rejoice in the Lord greatly that now at last you have revived your concern for me; indeed, you were concerned for me, but had no opportunity to show it. Not that I am referring to being in need; for I have learned to be content with whatever I have. I know what it is to have little, and I know what it is to have plenty. In any and all circumstances I have learned the secret of being well-fed and of going hungry, of having plenty and of being in need. I can do all things through him who strengthens me.

 

One of my favorite quotes from GK Chesterton goes something like this: “Angels can fly because they take themselves lightly”.

I unfortunately, too often, fail to take myself lightly.

And I don’t personally know of any Christians who can fly.

But there is wisdom in what Chesterton suggests --- even if most of us struggle to “take ourselves lightly.”

Christians don’t have a very good reputation

          Especially in taking ourselves “lightly”

Often in film and literature Christians are depicted as sour faced, unhappy creatures who want to share that unhappiness with everyone around them.

Recently I watched the Academy Award nominated film Doubt.  

It is a powerful movie that will challenge you on a number of levels, but the lead female character Sister Aloysious, played brilliantly by Merle Streep is the character of a miserable, joyless Christian.

John Steinbeck in East of Eden describes Liza Hamilton as:

“…a tight hard little woman humorless as a chicken … [with] a dour Presbyterian mind and a code of morals that pinned down and beat the brains out of nearly everything that was pleasant to do.”

I have met a few Liza’s in my life.

          Especially when I served as pastor in small country churches.

          Every church seemed to have at least one Liza

Even Saturday Night Live got into the act when Dana Carvey created the character of a woman named Enid Strict who was the uptight, smug, and pious host of a talk show called Church Chat. The “church lady”, as she was fondly called, was everyone’s worst nightmare of a neighbor.

Christians --- are stereotyped as people who just are not supposed to be fun. 

We are often seen as:

          Joyless

          Smug

          Self-righteous

          humorless

This morning we conclude our look at Paul’s letter to the church in Philippi by pausing over the final chapter of this short but powerful letter.

If anyone should be the prototype for the joyless Christian it would be Paul.

Paul, throughout his life had lost everything that he valued or would bring him happiness.

We find him isolated from friends and co-workers

His future is unsure and precarious.

Paul is waiting for either Claudius or Nero (we are not sure which one), the Emperor of Rome to decide his fate.

                   Neither are people I would want to judge me

Paul should be miserable --- he surely has every reason to be miserable.

But as you read the letter to the Philippians one thing seems to stand out: JOY.

This letter resounds with joy.

Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, Rejoice.

And then Paul does something that I really appreciate --- he tells us how to be a people who can rejoice.

Let your gentleness be known to everyone. The Lord is near. Do not worry about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.

Paul is letting us know that JOY is shaped when we learn to develop a disciplined focus of our hearts and minds and even our very lives --- focused:

on things that are good,

things that are beautiful,

things that are filled with the joy of the Spirit of Christ.

I read earlier this year a fascinating book by Malcom Gladwell, one of the most thought-provoking authors out there.  His newest book is called Talking to Strangers and like most things that Gladwell writes about, he turns our ideas on their heads.

But in the midst of this work, Gladwell reminds us that our biases deeply influence us subconsciously.

If he had been responding to Paul’s letter, I think he might have said, that Paul is telling us that in order to experience JOY we must set our minds on things that are really good, things which express the greatness and goodness and joy of God.

We need to train our brains to SEE joy

          To SEE the beauty all around us

For the group that has spent the last couple of months working through The Book of Joy by Desmond Tutu and the Dali Lama we have learned the same thing.

An attitude of Joyfulness helps to create Joy all around us.

But Paul’s advice wasn’t finished.  He goes on:

Finally, beloved, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is pleasing, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence and if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things. Keep on doing the things that you have learned and received and heard and seen in me, and the God of peace will be with you.

As many of you know, my parents have moved back to Darien Illinois and we are working to help them move ultimately into a Senior Living Facility somewhere up in that area.

I have committed --- that as long as I can during this newest rapid increase of COVID --- that every two weeks I will go up on Friday and come back to Indy on Saturday evening.

          I just got back to Indy last evening

I have been reading, David Garrow’s Pulitzer Prize winning book: Bearing the Cross: Martin Luther King, Jr., and the Southern Christian Leadership Conference.

Friday night, my dad and I were talking about the early 60’s being a pastor in Chicago.

This happens to be the part of the book that I am on.

I was born on the South Side of Chicago, and we lived in and around the city during the pivotal events of Martin’s protests against poverty and again the 1968 Democratic Convention.

I was too young to remember either of those events, but to listen to my dad as he shared his feelings and fears gave me a whole new sense of strength and the ability to keep on, keeping on.

As Paul says:

Keep on doing the things that you have learned and received and heard and seen in me

It is easy to feel joyless right now.

The next week and a half --- we are going to be overwhelmed with dystopian images and messages.

Facebook has become a place where we can see how rude we can be with each other --- which is why you won’t find me on there much anymore

But we as Christians are called to have a different message

We are called to share a message of hope and joy because at the end of the day

--- It is Jesus who is king and ruler of our lives

Jesus calls us to be united in Him and in God’s joy.

Yesterday we got the news that our youngest daughter has tested positive for COVID --- thank goodness --- so far she is only showing very mild symptoms.

As I was chatting with her last night, I wanted her to know that Nancy or I would come to Peoria if she needed anything.  I loved her response.

She said:

I have had five different people who have offered to get me groceries and do anything I need.  I was thinking today that I am really lucky that I’ve got good friends here even if I don’t live close to family.

She went on and said:

You can share at church if you want. --- (She watches each Sunday)  --- But mostly share about Wanda she needs the good vibes more than I do.

We all like to brag about our children --- and one of the hardest things about being your pastor here at Meridian Street is that you have never gotten to know my children.  This is the first church that Nancy and I have served that they have not been in our home and a part of the church (although their ability to participate via livestream has been one of the joys of the pandemic)

Haley is a High School Spanish teacher in Peoria, IL. 

But that does not define her. 

She is a person who is a giver. 

And one of the ways that she has learned to give is to foster animals (usually dogs).  She has had five dogs in her little house at one time.

But not only does she foster dogs --- she is willing to provide a loving home for an abandoned dog who is in what you would call a hospice foster. 

She is willing to welcome, often abused and neglected animals who are nearing the end of their lives into her home and let them know that they are loved.

Wanda --- the one-eyed wonder is one such dog.

Haley was planning on taking her to the vet on Monday for the final goodbye, and just a few minutes ago I got a text that Wanda has taken a turn for the worse and some friends are coming to take her to the vet right now --- but Haley will not be able to be go with her, and I know that it makes her sad and breaks my heart.

But Wanda --- for the five months or so that Haley has been her momma and given her love --- Wanda has filled Haley’s and many others’ hearts with JOY.

Paul understood hardships --- and as he closes this letter, Paul reminds us that hardship should never define us.

Hardship should be the opportunity for us to see and rejoice in the presence of God.

Paul writes:

I can endure all these things through the power of the one who gives me strength.

I am going to close with Paul’s words as translated by Eugene Peterson in The Message

Celebrate God all day, every day. I mean, revel in him! Make it as clear as you can to all you meet that you’re on their side, working with them and not against them. Help them see that the Master is about to arrive. He could show up any minute!

May we learn to fly with the angels --- not because we have some supernatural power --- but because we have learned to take ourselves lightly to find the joy in life and the ability to Rejoice in the Lord ALWAYS.