Indeed, judging is so prevalent in our society that watching TV shows about
people judging the performance of others in various disciplines from baking to
portrait painting , to dancing on ice has become a national pastime.
You can even watch shows where you watch other people watching people
judge other people dancing on ice or whatever it is!
More seriously, wherever it arises from, many of us live
with the harsh judgments of others in our daily experience –
Judgments of peers peers, parents, enemies and friends,
judgments of those who should have been more careful about what they said.
Judgements like these can be very hurtful indeed- shaming us,
damaging our confidence and our ability to live full and happy lives.
And then there is a judgment that is shriller & harsher still,
which again I suspect many of us are all too familiar with:
the judgment that comes from ourselves.
Nearly always these are lies right? – I am not lovable; I’m always wrong; No one
listens to me; I’m not worth it; Nobody understands; Things will never
change…
(someone in the front row has just ticked them all off! It wasn’t bingo sir!!)
But seriously, (!), think about it for yourself:
we all know how these false judgments work.
They warp the natural goodness of our personalities,
They harm & imprison us.
Instead of being warm, generous and free to care
the helper becomes clingy, proud and intruding.
Instead of being courageous, serene and enduring
the loyalist becomes cynical, paranoid and legalistic.
Instead of being patient composed and unifying,
the peacemaker becomes stubborn, slothful, and unfocused.
Instead of being warm, noble, and visionary
the reformer becomes angry, moralistic, and self-righteous.
I could go on. In each and every case-
the good creation that God has intended-into-being in our beautiful lives
is thwarted by adverse judgements from without and within.
Theologically, this experience of harm through harsh judgement
more or less maps onto what the Bible calls Sin.
And it is exactly this hurtful human experience of sin
that- in the epistle we heard a moment ago St. Paul was urging his followers to avoid being drawn back into.
And that has got to be the message of Easter Mattins:
“Now I would remind you, brothers and sisters, of the good news that I
proclaimed to you, which you in turn received, in which also you stand, through
which also you are being saved, if you hold firmly to the message that I
proclaimed to you—unless you have come to believe in vain.”
Do not believe in vain- Paul urges his friends- remember the good news,
The good news that deals with hurt
The good news that is the Healing of Humanity
The Good news of Easter Morning
the good news that we stand under God’s judgment.
Perhaps it is strange to think about God’s judgment like this- as good news.
But I am sure that, far from being a threat, or a problem,
as we may have been conditioned to think,
God’s judgment is the best news you will ever hear.
if we will only take his outstretched hand
and be led out of the grave that we dig for ourselves.
Last year it was the 650th anniversary of the spiritual writer, Julian of Norwich.
One of the most profound perspectives that she offered is about this difficulty
we have in believing the Good News of Easter- and accepting that God’s
judgement really is good news.
She tells a short parable about a servant who going about his masters duty,
but stumbles and falls into a ditch.
It is a parable of us and God.
What is profound is that- you read it thinking- judging- uh… he’s in trouble now
(we are conditioned to think like that)
And maybe, maybe, we might think- this is a Christian parable so
if the Lord was very nice he might suspend his harsh judgment
and let him off a bit…. or….
but Julian sees something startling instead
Despite what we might expect, and despite what we have been almost
conditioned to think proper, at no point does the Lord judge his servant at all,
let alone condemn him,
but at all times shows unconditional pitye and compassion.
So transformative is the Lord’s positive regard
that forgiveness does not come into it
because there was never anger or disappointment
and no blame was ever apportioned.
Indeed, transformative is the Lord’s positive regard
that he chastises himself for his servants fall.
I don’t know about you but I suspect for many of us,
our self-judgements are so ingrained and we’re so used to projecting
our standards onto God
that our response to this kinder judgement is something like:
That’s a bit soft. God isn’t to be toyed with. You’ve got to have a bit of guilt or
fear in there or people will just do whatever they want Justice has to be done!
But no- what that parable shows is what the Easter Story reveals.
God has rescued us from sin and death. Period.
God has destroyed the power and effect of Sin. Period.
If we must think of it like this. He has taken the blame. Period.
And, by the way, that language of judgment and justice
or sacrifice and appeasement
is biblical language but it is human language about God,
which we project onto God, rightly exploring God’s mystery.
Bu, like all our words about God- those ideas have their limits
They are not what God is actually actually like.
Friends- “don’t be alarmed!” – as the Angel said to Mary Magdelene-
Just because he’s not where you thought he was isn’t the end of the story.
What God and his judgement is actually actually like is revealed far more
clearly in this Easter story which turns all of those metaphors and projections
on their heads
If you’re looking for a bigger better badder judge.
You’re looking in the wrong place. He’s not here.
The empty tomb reveals a God who beyond all that.
Who- through his healing humanity
has revealed a perfect divinity that is ONLY and TOTALLY LOVE
Such love as gives us breath,
Such a love as ends all strife;
Such a love as killeth death.
Such a joy as none can move;
Such a love as none can part;
Such a heart as joys in- only in love.
Can we believe in news THAT good this Easter morning?
It seems so complete and so one sided as to be – literally –sacrilegious.
A God who says- its not your fault its mine.
Who does not bear a grudge?
To whom we owe nothing?
‘That there is no blame for those who stand in Christ Jesus’
who stands up from his Easter Work and says to us:
“Where are those who judge you so harshly?
Has no one condemned you?
Neither do I condemn you”.
It seems like pretty great news to me!
But…. I’ll let you be the judge of that.
