Sermon, 4th Sunday after Easter, 2025
Throughout our lives we may have various encounters with art or nature that draw us away from ourselves to touch the transcendent and point us to God. These sublime experiences last for minutes and yet leave us desiring more. We wish that they could become a part of us – that we could somehow be united with them. No doubt the disciples experienced this living day in and day out with Jesus Christ, God Incarnate. As embodied creatures, they could not truly be united to the messiah. Union with God could only happen when Christ returned to the Father and sent the Holy Spirit, who has taken up residence within believers. What seems at first a great loss, the removal of Christ from the world, actually enables us to enjoy a more intimate fellowship with God than had Christ remained.