|
First
Reading
|
Psalm |
Epistle |
Gospel |
| Acts 1:1–11 |
Psalm 97 |
Acts 16:16–34 |
John 17:20–26 |
The Acts of the Apostles was written as the continuation of the Gospel of Luke, and was intended to show that people of all social classes and religious backgrounds were attracted to and welcomed into the new Christian community. In the parallel stories about the slave girl and Paul, and Paul and the jailor there is a poignant contrast between power and powerlessness in the world, and between secular power and the power of the Gospel.
It is obvious that the girl was being exploited. Her cries to Paul were a desperate cry for help from her suffering and a protest against those who were taking advantage of her illness. At a different level those who held her captive and exploited her were in turn perversely bound to her for providing their livelihood and trapped in their own depravity.
The town jailer had power because he was the keeper of the keys, the one who confined the prisoners in their cells. To those imprisoned, the jailer was a symbol of the power that oppressed them. At the same time, the jailer was answerable to higher authorities and, if he permitted prisoners to escape, he too would be dealt with harshly.
Paul recognized that both the slave girl and the jailer were at very vulnerable times in their lives. Neither of them was seeking the Gospel, but each of them needed deliverance from a situation that seemed totally hopeless. The Gospel opened a new door of hope, a door that they never had imagined. Note that this is not a simple “happily ever after story.” The Gospel offers a fresh start, but recognizes that there may well be struggle ahead.
The owners of the slave girl sought revenge. Would they finally let her go, or would they try to enslave her in another way? The girl herself was healed of her demons, yet she lost her means of support. Her illness had been the defining factor of her life, and now that was gone. Would she be able to live a healthy life or would she franticly search for some other crutch or find a subtler demon to carry?
The jailer put himself and his family in a new kind of danger. How would the magistrates react? Would his job be in jeopardy when his superiors heard that he had become a Christian? Would his family that had been baptized be subject to recrimination? Even today, in some countries, children who are baptized are sometimes denied admission to universities and the opportunity of certain jobs.
We would like to think that the Christian community there at Philippi took in and protected the slave girl and the jailer and his family. Perhaps Lydia gave the slave girl a job in the dye shop or helped set her up in selling organic fragrances and herbs. Perhaps the jailer and his family opened a bed and breakfast and he wrote a book on prison reform. What we do know is that whether we are in the top echelon of society or near the bottom, the Gospel has the potential to completely shift and rearrange our lives. The Gospel opens additional doors and our future becomes considerably more open-ended. We all hear the complaint that things never change, and that often seems depressingly true, yet as people of faith we are given the opportunity to re-define who we are, and to reframe the environment around us. That is why the jailer asked Paul, “Why are you so free and how did you get that way?” Paul answered, “We were all chained, but the Gospel unbinds us from the total grip of the world around our throats.” Paul tells the jailer, “You, too, do not have to believe that you are completely bound either. You, too, are free to escape from the ultimate grip of the world.”
The weeks after celebrating the resurrection wiz by all too quickly for us. Some of our lessons and hymns today commemorate Jesus’ ascension, reminding us that the living Christ comes to us across time and distance. Next week we will celebrate the gift of the Holy Spirit, the gift that continually leads us into new and deeper truth and relationships.
During this time of transition and celebration of many types of new beginnings, the Gospel reminds us that we are continually being given the opportunity to witness to the healing and fresh power of the Gospel to people in vulnerable moments. With the sensitivity and grace of the Holy Spirit we can be instruments of deliverance just as Paul was to the slave girl and the jailer. We may not be confronted with as dramatic situations, but we never know, and often never will find out the extent of the good work of the Gospel. Small, everyday kindnesses may lead to big time healing and reconciliation. None of us can go it alone in this world for very long, but the Good News is that we do not have to. We have the witness of the early church, the promise of the Holy Spirit, and the dynamic power of the risen Christ to guide us. That’s Good News for today and for every day to come.
And I offer this to you in the name of the Living God, Amen.
