It's about Identity

by: Pastor John

Wed Nov 21, 2007 at 15:29:07 PM EST

We know this: he was rich and powerful because he was in charge of the entire treasury of Candace, the queen of Ethiopia. He was riding in a chariot (probably chauffeured) that was large enough for Philip the evangelist to get in and sit beside him. He was educated because he was reading the Hebrew Scriptures while riding in his chariot. And we know he was searching for God's truth; "he had come to Jerusalem to worship." 

We know a little bit about Philip, too. Philip was an evangelist in the early church who had answered God's call to proclaim God's Good News about Jesus to everyone everywhere. Philip listened to God and followed God's leading, and most assuredly God led Philip to this experience.

First God sent an angel to Philip with the message to go to a road in the wilderness. "Wilderness;" how many of us have felt like we were alone in the wilderness in our search for truth? But that's another story for another time…. After sending Philip into the wilderness, God spoke to Philip again in the Spirit and sent him directly to the chariot of this rich and powerful foreigner from Africa. It is clear that God wanted these two men to meet, God led Philip to this man through both an angel and the Holy Spirit!

Philip ran up to the chariot and heard this powerful man reading from the prophet Isaiah. Probably the passage he was reading he had internalized; "In his humiliation justice was denied him. Who can describe his generation?" He probably personalized this passage because this powerful Ethiopian had gone to Jerusalem to worship, but he was not even allowed in the assembly. He had traveled a long way to worship and I'm sure he expected to be welcomed if for no other reason than his powerful position. Instead, he was not even allowed in church! He was rejected by the church because of his sexual identity. You see, this powerful man was a eunuch and according to the Law of Moses eunuchs are barred from church.  In many ways today nothing has changed; people are still rejected by the church because of their sexual identity.

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In this story from Acts we learn that the God revealed in Jesus' does not reject someone because of their sexual identity. In fact, God blessed with baptism and the Spirit this eunuch who was rejected by the church. And Christian church tradition and history credits the Christian church in Ethiopia to this eunuch who returned home declaring God's love in Jesus for everyone everywhere.

Our sexual identity is at the core of who we are. In the world people reject those who are different from themselves, but Jesus' disciples are not of the world. Jesus' teaching about the issue of sexual identity was difficult when he gave that teaching and is still difficult today for many "religious." In Jesus' own words, "Not everyone can accept this teaching, but only those to whom it is given."  It is only through God's Holy Spirit that we can be given the understanding that even people rejected by the church because of their sexual identity can still glorify God and God's kingdom. 

The United Church of Christ has encouraged believers to open themselves to new understanding and living of God's love for everyone. When we do that and love as Jesus loves  we are blessed by God's Spirit and God's Spirit teaches us everything we need to enable us to love everyone and thereby experience "the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding". 

As Jesus' disciples we are called to love as Jesus loves. When we study the Gospels we see that many of Jesus' followers were rejected by the religious of the day because they were, according to the Law of Moses, sinners. Jesus' followers became Jesus' disciples because he accepted them for who they were not for who the church thought they should be. The transformation that happened in their lives by following Jesus was not a change of identity, but a change in relationship. In love Jesus' disciples are transformed in their relationship to God - from knowing God as some distant, transcendent being apart from humankind and accessible to only a few selected holy people - to knowing God as Father and knowing God intimately as Father is the beginning of eternal life, and eternal life necessarily mandates we love everyone everywhere, even our enemies!  When we choose to love that way we are truly blessed.

To everyone everywhere; know that at St. John's United Church of Christ, God Is Still Speaking and teaching that no matter who you are or where you are on life's journey you will find a spiritual home here. And members of the LGBT community please forgive me for learning to love so slowly.

Still In One Peace ~ pastor john

For an MS Word document of this article, including footnotes, click here.