![]() ![]() “What are the programs that may have served a significant purpose at one time, but are no longer relevant in 2020? What are the systems that work within us that are actually doing more harm than they are good? What are the policies and practices that are supporting institutions rather than people who are beloved in the kingdom of God? And what ways are we, whether intentionally or unintentionally, whether explicitly or complicitly hurting people of color, victims of abuse, our LGBTQ siblings, people living in marginalized communities and our neighbors whether they live down the street or across the border? Friends, what is it that needs to die within us for God to resurrect something new? And how might you and I go boldly about doing that hard and holy Kingdom-building work?”ĭeath and despair never get the last word of God’s story, Birdwhistell told the assembly. Because that’s the thing about resurrection, it can’t happen without a death….And I can’t help, but ask myself what is within me, within us, within our church, within our communities and even within our Fellowship that needs to die and to be buried in order for God to resurrect something new and beautiful. After all, today’s text is about burying a body, not celebrating a resurrection. ![]() “And yet, we get these beautiful glimpses of this Kingdom, that we, like Joseph, are expectantly waiting and we also admit the truth that it is not fully here yet-not by any stretch of the imagination. “Friends, there is bold and beautiful work that is happening all around us,” she said. “Friends, what if that is actually the hardest and holiest work that you and I could ever do? I must admit that something that has deeply sustained me in this season has been the bold and beautiful work that is taking place within our Fellowship.”īirdwhistell cited CBF chaplain Will Runyon’s bold presence at the bedside of countless COVID-19 patients in Albany, Ga., and the bold mission of CBF field personnel Missy Ward Angalla to care for more than 700 of her refugee neighbors in Uganda who had gone days without food and medical care during the COVID-19 lockdown. “And yet, what would it mean for us, like Joseph, to live boldly in this season? Even if to the rest of the world, it looks like caring for something that has already been declared dead,” Birdwhistell said. She said some ask the same question of the Fellowship. With death tolls climbing, the world economy crashing and church budgets dwindling…so many look at us with a puzzled look and say, ‘why bother,” Birdwhistell said. “At a time when so many people seem to think that churches may not survive a crisis of this magnitude, some think that the trouble you and I are going to these days is rather odd. “All we know is that Joseph finally shows up and does the hard and holy work that needs to be done,” she continued, noting that some might find it “odd” to preach on Jesus’ death in midst of a global pandemic. While the disciples have fled and forsaken Jesus, it was Joseph who went to Pilate to request the body of Jesus. “We all need to consider in situations when we too have shown up far too late and when our prophetic witness and faithful actions in the world are long overdue,” Birdwhistell said. “Why didn’t he speak up sooner? Those are valid questions.” Why didn’t he show up for Jesus earlier,” Birdwhistell asked. And as I read today’s text in the Gospel of Mark, as Joseph of Arimathea goes to Pilate and asked to bury the body of Jesus, I can’t help but wonder if he has any idea what is in store for him-if he knows just how hard and just how holy it will be to bury someone he loves.”īirdwhistell points out that some read this scripture and note that he only happens to show up after Jesus’ death, after the council, which he belonged to, voted to crucify Jesus. “Nothing prepared me for it, because nothing could have prepared me for the hard and holy work of burying someone you love. She recently accepted a call to serve as pastor of Highland Baptist Church in Louisville, Ky. Mary Alice Birdwhistell is senior pastor of Calvary Baptist Church in Waco, Texas. ![]()
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