The Diocese of East Tennessee
Sermons

May 28, 2000
Easter VI
Delivered at Church of the Good Shepherd,
Lookout Mountain

Sermon: Chosen Ones
The Right Reverend Charles G. vonRosenberg
Third Bishop of East Tennessee

I want to begin by thanking the people of Good Shepherd for your kind welcome of Annie and me. Indeed, we have been here on several occasions now, and it is always a treat to be with you. Thanks, also, to the ordained leaders of this congregation - priests and deacons - who serve well here and who also offer themselves in service to our diocese. I am grateful indeed for all your efforts.

Some of my most vivid memories of elementary school involve the playground - that center for social interaction, physical challenge, and initial attempts at growing up. And in that setting, a certain activity took place that I remember quite well - the choosing of teams on the ball field. That is, as I and my buddies stood there waiting and wondering, teams were chosen. People were picked, and the pool of possibilities gradually dwindled. In the process, young minds dealt with large issues such as self-worth, affirmation, and identity. A school child felt very good about himself or herself if the process of choosing played out in one direction…but not so good if it went another way. To be chosen meant success, but to be left until last, just as surely indicated failure.

In our Gospel this morning, we read that Jesus said to his disciples, "You did not choose me, but I chose you" (Jn 15:16). Now, he spoke those words to his followers in the first century. However, we are Jesus' disciples today. We inherit the position of disciple in our time. Therefore, I suggest that Jesus says also to us - his present-day disciples on the playgrounds of our lives - "You did not choose me, but I chose you." And if we take seriously that process of choosing, then issues of self-worth, affirmation, and identity surely come into play in this setting as well.

What would life look like if we truly believed that we are chosen by Jesus? How would life be different if we lived in response to being chosen by our Lord? In what ways would the results of ReVision at Good Shepherd be impacted if we fully appreciated our Lord's affirmation that he has chosen us? I suspect that answers to the universal questions of self-worth, affirmation, and identity will indeed be found when we discover a sense of being chosen by Jesus Christ.

In today's Gospel, Jesus provides us with several hints about what such a life would look like. He describes there what it means to be chosen by him.

Jesus says first of all, "As the Father has loved me, so I have loved you." That's a good place to begin - a firm foundation indeed. To be chosen by Jesus means that we are aware of his love for us … love that starts with God the Father; love that we experience from Jesus himself.

Secondly, Jesus indicates that we abide in his love by keeping his commandments. This continues the theme from last Sunday, you will recall - or, at least, I hope you will. That is, we live into this relationship of being chosen - which is a relationship of love - by keeping the commandments that Jesus gives us. And, remember, those commandments themselves are summed up in the command to love.

A third mark of this chosen life is to experience the joy of Jesus … a kind of joy that is utterly full. Jesus says, "I have said these things to you so that my joy may be in you, and that your joy may be complete."

Fourthly, as ones chosen by Jesus we no longer are considered servants but, rather, as friends of our Lord. Thus, a change of status results - a status that has everything to do with self-worth, affirmation, and identity. We are not servants any more but, rather, friends of our Lord Christ.

Then, we are appointed by Jesus to go out and make a difference as a result of his choosing us. He says, "I appointed you to go and bear fruit, fruit that will last." Being chosen by Jesus makes a difference in our lives, and we are called to make a difference in the lives of others and of the world.

Finally, we are chosen so that we will obey the commands of Jesus, to the end that love will be shared as the determining factor of all relationships. "I am giving you these commands", Jesus says, "so that you may love one another."

Now, to our skeptical, critical minds, this may all sound a bit unreal - almost unbelievable - to live a life in response to the faith that Jesus has chosen us somehow. Our collect today, though, summarizes such a life in fairly simple terms: "O God, you have prepared for those who love you such good things as surpass our understanding; Pour into our hearts such love towards you, that we, loving you in all things and above all things, may obtain your promises, which exceed all that we can desire."

Jesus affirms, "You did not choose me, but I chose you." From what I can understand of a life lived in awareness of being chosen by Jesus - and from what we read in today's Gospel - we might anticipate several characteristics in such a life.

This is a life of love. Love originates with God, and we experience such love through Jesus Christ. We know that being chosen by Jesus conveys also the sense of being loved by our Lord. That, indeed, provides us with unshakable self-worth … indeed, the self-worth that does not fail, for, in spite of everything, we are loved by God in Christ.

This also is a life of joy. We possess a sense of joy that is complete and unquenchable. Constant happiness is not promised, nor is that our experience. However, a profound joy persists beyond a more temporary happiness or sadness or anything else. And in that joy, we find a source of deep affirmation for life itself.

Finally, this is a life of community, lived in mission to the world. We are not chosen in order to experience our "chosen-ness" alone. Rather, we live in community, and we live for others, as we look beyond ourselves. Indeed, by choosing us, Jesus compels us beyond ourselves, in the exercise of love. That defines who we are. It explains our identity.

In conclusion, then, Jesus says, "You did not choose me, but I chose you." Following our awareness of that choice, we find also that our Lord's love provides us with self-worth. The resulting joy brings with it the affirmation we need for life. And, sharing life in community and with the world offers us our identity.

Therefore, for the gift of our Lord's choice of us and for the life we live as a result, thanks be to God!

Copyright © 2000 The Episcopal Diocese of East Tennessee