Dear friends,

Today our lectionary readings present two texts that at first glance seem to be in perfect harmony with each other.  We find them in the Gospel of John and in the Epistle to the Ephesians.  They deal with believing in God, with love, but also with judgment.  At the heart of these passages we find a tale not of two cities, but of two verses. The first is Jesus’ saying in John 3:16: “For God so loved the world that God gave God’s only begotten son that whoever believes in Him would not perish, but have eternal life.”  The second is verse 8 in Ephesians chapter 2: ”For by grace you have been saved, through faith; and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God.”

Actually at second glance these two verses are still perfectly compatible.“  They are both about God’s love and they are both about God’s gift, the gift of Jesus. The problem lies more in the nuance that has been underlined by Christians over the centuries.  It has helped create theological divide that still plays out even to a certain degree within the Presbyterian Church USA.  We see John 3:16 on signs held up during televised football games and on bumper stickers, so this is the verse we are most familiar with.  The other one lies under the radar screen.  The first is a reminder of God’s love and the same time it is call to action. It says: accept Jesus now or soon you will regret.  Somehow Christians have underlined the “love” less than the “perish.”  The interpretation is one third love and two-third perish.    Of course they have done so out of concern for non-Christians and with good intention. On the other hand the verse in Ephesians underlines that the whole act of God’s salvation is God’s gift.  It has said to Christians over the years that God’s got it covered.  God’ grace will win out in the end.  The first passage has led to an attitude of alarm and urgency.  The second has led to a sense of calm and relaxation.  The Houston Chronicle reports the following story of its website: A Christian- owned Kwik kar and Lube and Service Plano, Texas lets customers who recite a Bible verse get a $19.99 oil change. When one non-believing customer refused, his bill went up to $46, sparking controversy over the deal.   Charlie Whittington who owns the station and came up with the deal, is standing firm on his faith, despite complaints from Marshall Wei, who just wants the same perks as those who did recite the popular declaration: “For God so loved the world…..” The coupon Wei received says customers must recite the verse to get the $19.99 price.  Dallas attorney Andy Siegel told the station that as a private business, the Bible based discount seems to be within the law, though he added, ”The study of the Bible has many rewards. I’m not sure God intended a lube discount to be among its many riches.”  Now I am not here to tell you which verse to pick. They are both in the Bible.  They are both about God’s gift.  What I do want to do is warn against “versitis” as Leonard Sweet calls it or should we call it “versism.”  We have racism and sexism and classism, but what about “versism?” That would the act of discriminating between verses.  I think that is a good point.  There is a tradition of memorizing verses that runs deep in this country.

So, friends, what can we learn from this? I think we can learn that the Bible is like a jigsaw puzzle that is so large that there are always a few pieces missing. We never have the whole picture. In a way the verses are pieces. The most well known verses are well known for a reason. They do lie at the heart of the message of God’s good news, but they cannot make us see the entire picture all the time.  That is why I wanted to show how putting those apparently similar verses together can already give us a bigger picture. If we only look at the first verse, we get a sense of alarm but those who do not believe and we can get overwhelmed by the word “perish.” By looking at the other verse we are put at rest because we are reminded that faith is always in God’s hand: we cannot make ourselves or others believe. Faith is not something we make happen.  Faith happens and sometimes it doesn’t happen.  It’s like the first verse says: be aware and the other says: trust God. Together they tell us to be aware AND trusting.  Friends, we never have the whole picture of God’s message. The mystery endures.  We cannot put God’s message on one piece of cardboard at a football game.  At the same time, we cannot find out what God might be saying to us if we do not give the Bible the light of day.  So be aware and be trusting.  Be open but relax.  God calls to action but the final results are in God’s hands.  God’s message is a jigsaw puzzle and we can never see all the pieces.  Getting to know the message of God is a journey of discovery that takes us around new bends and over new hills at different turns in our lives. None of us have it all figured out. If we say we do we are either more ignorant that we assumed or we are lying. May God help us put the pieces together and joyfully look for the missing ones. Thanks be to God. Amen.