Pastor's Paragraphs | February 25, 2022

Since, then, we have such a hope, we act with great boldness, not like Moses, who put a veil over his face to keep the people of Israel from gazing at the end of the glory that was being set aside. But their minds were hardened. Indeed, to this very day, when they hear the reading of the old covenant, that same veil is still there, since only in Christ is it set aside. Indeed, to this very day whenever Moses is read, a veil lies over their minds; but when one turns to the Lord, the veil is removed. Now the Lord is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom. And all of us, with unveiled faces, seeing the glory of the Lord as though reflected in a mirror, are being transformed into the same image from one degree of glory to another; for this comes from the Lord, the Spirit. Therefore, since it is by God's mercy that we are engaged in this ministry, we do not lose heart.

2 Corinthians 3:12-4:1
A school in Ukraine hit by shelling in the recent conflict. GETTY IMAGES
In one of the Lectionary passages assigned to this Sunday, Paul writes to the church at Corinth to encourage them to be a people firmly ground in the hope they have been given. He speaks of the story in another of our Lectionary passages: Exodus 34:29-35, where Moses brings the commandments down the mountain to share with the Hebrews in the desert. Paul references this to relate the 'veil' that the people wore. They were not completely blinded to the living presence of God in the world around them – a veil is not a blackout covering – but they could not see clearly either.

Today, we face a world in turmoil. Like myself, some of you have been watching the news feeds from the nation of Ukraine with rapt attention. At the time I write this, Russian troops are pushing further into the country while its citizens huddle in subway tunnels for fear of airstrikes. Even from so far away, we still can feel fear tighten in our hearts for what this could mean for the world in which we live.

For many in our world, thoughts of "the end" reign in their minds. Anxiety around a possible world war and the upending of the "peace" we all know stands at the forefront of their minds. The darkness of the world feels like a never-ending cloud that suffocates out our optimism and hope for tomorrow.

If he were here today, I think Paul would remind us that this darkness is but another veil over our faces. He would tell us to throw it off and see that Jesus is still in the "making all things new" business. As Paul says to the Corinthians, we have a hope that cannot be stomped out. It is a hope that has stood throughout the centuries: in the face of persecution, at the threat of plague, under the fear of war, and in every threat of oppression. In these dark things, the hope that we carry has not wavered –– not an ounce.

Paul says that this hope gives us the ability to always move forward with "great boldness." The disciples of Jesus are not a people who fall back in fear at every turn, but rather a people who peer into the darkness – no matter how great – and see pinpricks of light that swirl in its midst.

Even in this new situation that grips our hearts with worry, our hope in the promise of a different world should not waver. Christ's goal has been, and will always be, the transformation of our lives and the world in which we live them. To make things "on earth as they are in heaven."

As we recognize Transfiguration Sunday this week in worship, let's hold on to the hope that Christ's gospel gives to us. Let's remind ourselves that Jesus' path is one where we follow the Spirit's guidance, not the fear from the news cycle.

As Paul notes, "where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom." Freedom from the old understandings of the world. Freedom from suffocating darkness. Freedom from the veils we wear that keep us from the constant hope we are called to.

Join me in praying for the situation in Ukraine, but also join me in holding on to the hope of transformation that is possible if we both trust Christ, and live out our faith in ways that push for the change he taught us is possible.

Hold on to hope. Don't lose heart.

The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it.

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