“Already, Not Yet”
Main point: Saints live in the “already” reality of the kingdom of God is greater than the “not yet.”
BLESSING THE CHILDREN
SERMON
Introduction
Lutheran Summer Day Camp
Before I get started.. I want to introduce to you a statement that helps us make sense of so much about ourselves and the era we live in as Christians: Already, Not Yet. Keep that in your minds as we consider the lives of Peter and Paul.
Peter and Paul were saints and martyrs.
Who were Peter and Paul?
St. Peter the Apostle was Jesus’ right-hand man. He was a witness to the many miracles of Jesus. He was present at the Transfiguration. When the going got tough he denied Jesus three times, but his relationship to Jesus was restored and he became a pillar in the early church in Jerusalem. He was known as the Apostle to the Jewish people. He died a martyr’s death. He was crucified in Rome under the Roman Emperor Nero.
St. Paul the Apostle was not originally a follower of Jesus. He persecuted the church and was even responsible for the death of St. Stephen, the first Christian martyr. He traveled all over Asia Minor in his three missionary journeys to spread the message of Jesus. He was also killed by the Roman Emperor Nero.
Some accounts tell us Peter and Paul were martyred at the same time - one by crucifixion and the other by beheading - during the Christian Persecution by the Emperor Nero following the Great Fire of Rome in A.D. 64.
Two Great Questions
This leads us to two great questions that arise on these days when we commemorate saints and martyrs.
The first question is regarding saints. Q1: What is up with saints? What are they and why would we try to remember them?
Saint
Definition: holy one(s)
We understand this in two senses.
In one sense, we all are saints because we have been called out by God to be God’s holy ones. “Already.”
Romans 1:7 To all who are in Rome, beloved of God, called to be saints: Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.
The Apostle Paul,2 Corinthians 1:22 set his seal of ownership on us, and put his Spirit in our hearts as a deposit, guaranteeing what is to come.
We are also building toward the full measure of what we have been called to be as God’s perfect holy ones. We are “not yet” what we will be.
Philippians 3:13 Brothers and sisters, forgetting what lies behind and straining forward to what lies ahead, 14 I press on toward the goal, toward the prize of the heavenly call of God in Christ Jesus.
Martyr
The second question is regarding martyrdom. Q2: What would grip a person so strongly that they would die for their faith? Didn’t Jesus already die for us? What good does the death of a saint do? Wouldn’t it be better if they kept on living to do the good things they were doing while they were alive? Why would they give their lives for their faith?
Already, Not Yet
I would like to introduce to you a phrase that helps us make sense of these questions about sainthood and martyrdom. Already, not yet.
We live in an era when God’s work in the world is “already fully present in you and in me, not yet perfected for what it will be.” Saints (like Peter and Paul) live in the full reality of God’s presence and work in the world here and now. They live so fully in the already aspect of God’s presence and activity in the world that the “not yet” aspect is pushed out of their minds entirely.
Saints are able to see these things from God. We call that vision faith.
We can grow in that faith - to see what the saints see.
