The Christian church, by its very nature, is steeped in antiquity. Think about it. The very basis of the church is centered on someone who lived around 2,000 years ago, Jesus. The stories and teachings that we hear practically every Sunday in worship come from texts that were written during those ancient times, including many that were written thousands of years before Jesus was ever born. I'm of course referring to the Bible.
Amazingly, those of us today who follow the life and teachings of Jesus are living in a radically different time period. Mary Magdalene, Martha, Peter, and Paul couldn't have imagined in their wildest dreams what I'm doing at this moment as I write on my laptop a message that will go on a blog which will then be accessible at the fingertips of people across the globe, and instantly!
If I were able to travel back in time, sit down for dinner with Martha and Peter and explain what I can do in the year 2020 on a computer, they would surely think I'm insane or talking about some sort of incomprehensible magic.
Yet here we are now in the midst of the Coronavirus pandemic that has led us to experience worship services exclusively on the internet, watching on our church's YouTube channel, Facebook, or website.
This past weekend, I preached online a sermon from the ancient text called the Gospel of Matthew, probably written around the year 80 AD. The story was about Jesus traveling into Jerusalem.
He didn't travel to the city on an airplane that landed in an airport. He didn't arrive by driving in an SUV. He wasn't a passenger on a train. He couldn't even travel to Jerusalem on a bicycle. He traveled on a donkey. Yes, a donkey (well, a least it is faster than walking).
Our church will continue to travel forward in time: today will become yesterday, and tomorrow will become today. Time continues onward. And so does the church.
“I am the Alpha and the Omega,” says the Lord God, who is and who was and who is to come, the Almighty" (Revelation 1:8, probably written around the year 95 AD).
