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FOR GOD SO LOVED THE WORLD
The Rev. Harold Shepherd, CD, M.A., S.T.M., LL.B., LL.M., Ph.D.
Sermon from February 20, 2005

No one has ascended into heaven except the one who descended from heaven, the Son of Man. And just as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, so must the Son of Man be lifted up, that whoever believes in him may have eternal life. "For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, so that everyone who believes in him may not perish but may have eternal life. "Indeed, God did not send the Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him. John 3:13-17

According to John 1:10, Jesus "was in the world, and the world came into being through him, yet the world did not know him." In today’s reading, God sent his son to save the world. In John 8:23 we read: "You are of this world, I am not of this world." In John 15:18, Jesus says: "If the world hates you, be aware that it hated me before it hated you. If you belonged to the world, the world would love you as its own. Because you do not belong to the world, but I have chosen you out of the world- therefore the world hates you." In John 18:36, Jesus tells Pilate: "My kingdom is not of this world." In John 12:31 says: "Now is the judgment of this world; now the ruler of this world will be driven out." In John 16:11 we read: "the ruler of this wold has been condemned.." According to the Fourth Gospel, this world, though created by God, has fallen under the power of spiritual forces alienated from God. As such, the world is a hostile place for believers. They need to come out of the world and create their own safe environment. This perspective can also be found in the Book of Revelation, and can be characterized as being counter-cultural. It is the type of world view that has led Christians to retreat from interaction with the world to join monasteries or create Christian communities in remote locations. Alternatively, those living in urban centres reject contact with the surrounding culture, living simple lives of devotion and fellowship.

An alternate world view can be found in the writings of Paul. In Romans 13:1, he writes: "Let every person be subject to the governing authorities; for there is no authority except from God, and those authorities that exist have been instituted by God. Therefore whoever resists authority resists what God has appointed." Law holds society together as part of God’s presence in his world. With respect to natural law binding on all people, Paul writes in Romans 1:19: "For what can be known about God is plain to them [i.e. the Gentiles], because God has shown it to them. Ever since the creation of the world his eternal power and divine nature, invisible though they are, have been understood and seen through the things he has made. So they are without excuse." Paul is responding to the question of how Gentiles can be held accountable before God for breaking his law if they are not bound by the Jewish Torah (Law). He responds by appealing to the Hebrew understanding of Wisdom through which God created the universe and which testifies to universal law through conscience. In Romans 5:12-21, Paul argues that sin came into the world through Adam. As a result sin, as a power, exists in the world. In Romans 12:2, he challenges us not to be conformed to "this world" (i.e. non-Christian world views) but rather be transformed by the renewing of our minds. Paul has adopted a much more optimistic view of the world. It if fundamentally God’s world, filled with signs of his presence and whispers of his voice. Although sin has entered the world and distorted relationships among people and with God, it is also the theater of God’s redemption through Jesus. Part of God’s creation has become broken, but Jesus is here to bring healing and reconciliation.

How can we account for these very different world views? John and Revelation were written in the 90's A.D. during a time of persecution of the Church. In A.D. 85 at the Council of Jamnia, the birkat ha-mînîm. blessing was introduced in synagogues to pronounce a curse on Nazarenes (Christians), thus expelling Christians from the synagogues. Historic national religions were tolerated by the Romans, but not new ones. Once ousted from the legal protection of Judaism, the Church underwent severe persecution under Emperor Domitian (81-96). For Christian writers during this period, nothing good could be said about the Emperor. A clear distinction was made between the evil world of persecution in which even your neighbour could betray you, and the Kingdom of God. For John, the ruler of this world is evil. Paul, on the other hand, saw the world through the eyes of Pharisaic Judaism. This is God’s world, created by his Wisdom and is the place in which we encounter him in all things. Although evil exists, it is an aberration and does not represent the true nature of the world. Christ, as the new Adam, restores creation to its original state through the new covenant. As Christians, we can choose to be salt of the earth and light of the world, or we can retreat in fear. I choose light.