Refraction and Reflection

Sermon Prepared for Messiah Lutheran Church

Auburn WA, February 14, 2010 – Transfiguration

by Gregory S. Kaurin, Senior Pastor

Texts: 2 Corinthians 3:16 - 4:2 and Luke 9:28-36

"Refraction & Reflection"

Over these last several weeks, we’ve been talking about "re-tion" words, words that start with the prefix "re-" and end with the suffix "-tion." Before finishing with "refraction and reflection," let’s do a quick review of the main words and points.

We started with restoration. Restoration isn’t about going back to the old days; they’re gone. It is an honest look at what I bring into this moment, and what I have to let go of, in order to move forward from here on my journey with Christ. Second was rejuvenation: knowing that I’ve been saved and forgiven, Jesus laughs and calls me to skip with him. To be young in heart, always.

Third, on Word of God Sunday, we spoke of revelation of scripture. The Bible’s job is to reveal, to introduce us to Christ, and to help us get to know him better. Fourth, on that same Sunday, we talked about the respiration of scripture. We are called to let God’s Spirit inspire—or breath into—us through the scriptures, so that he will be able to exhale through our lives. Bible reading is our Christian respiration of God’s Holy Spirit.

Fifth, last week, we spoke of renunciation, how we, like Isaiah and Peter, are called to renounce ourselves, the powers of evil, the devil, and all his empty promises, …with God’s help. Sixth we can trust the full remission of our sins; they are remitted to the cross, and we have been re-missioned, sent anew, to proclaim the good news of forgiveness—through Jesus Christ—to others.

Put it all together: we have been 1. restored, given our place as God’s Children, and eternally 2. rejuvenated by Christ as he is 3. revealed to us through the 4. breathing in and out, the respiration, of the Holy Scriptures, which gives us the ability and courage to 5. renounce our selfish concerns and desires, and instead we have been given a new mission, or 6. re-missioned, to spread his gospel. I bet you didn’t know there was a logical flow to all this!

But how? How will we spread this gospel? Through refraction and reflection, our last two "re-tion" words. Refraction as a spiritual idea is interesting. In the world, refraction is the change in direction of waves caused by a change in speed—sound waves, light waves, or even water.

Here’s the mathematical equation for refraction…

and if that doesn’t clear it up, let me graph it (click) for you:

Okay, I didn’t get past Algebra 3 or Trigonometry, so I haven’t got a clue what I’m looking at there.

Instead, let’s take a look at what we see in the world as a result of refraction. When you put a straw in a glass of water, what seems to happen to the straw? It looks like it bends from the top or breaks from the side. That’s refraction. Or, because of the way refraction bends light into its full spectrum, what do we sometimes see when sunlight bounces back to us from rain or water drops in the sky? A rainbow. That’s a result of refraction.

But here’s where I think it gets even more interesting, and beautiful, and more pertinent to our discussion today. This is a photograph by Mila Zinkova. At first you might just see raindrops with a blurry image of the Golden Gate Bridge behind them, but look in the raindrops. What do you see there? Little bent images of the bridge. One of the neat things that photographers can do is catch an image refracted from somewhere else, seemingly displaced in a water drop. Here’s one by D. Sharon Pruitt that captures a flower print from somewhere below the water drop.

I could do this all day, but I need to get to my point. It’s about the way our actions and lives affect others, and how Christ connects us to the Kingdom. Refraction. We might otherwise, all of us, continue on in straight lines, but something, or someone, moves in our way, or slows us down, and we are forced to change direction, and we—in turn—affect other people’s lives in good or bad ways.

It seems like an obvious point, I realize, but too often, we like to pretend that my life is my own concern, that what I decide to do or not do will only affect me. I’m responsible for my own actions, so what right do you have to try to tell me how I should live my life? So, he parties late, drinks another and gets into his car and drives home. And what happens? Maybe nothing that night. But how does he treat people at home once he gets there. Or not treat them? Or worse: he gets in an accident and injures or kills himself, or someone else. What happens to his life, or to hers, or to the people around them? His decision and actions will forever be refracting on them, and on from there.

Even the quiet things that you want to imagine no one sees or knows about. They affect you, and you will in turn affect even people you just meet, talk to, or choose not to talk to. Some people call it negative or positive energy. I don’t think it’s magic or or ESP, but I know it’s real. It is how our spirits are connected, and the refractive way we cast light or shadow all around us.

It works in the positive, too. Do you know the number one proven way that causes people to quit smoking? When their friends or even just acquaintances quit. In a couple of studies, they’ve even been able to chart ripple effects to show how one person who quits smoking over here eventually leads to this person quitting over here, even if they never met. That’s smoking, addiction. What about common behavior?

In the movie Gladiator, maybe you remember when Maximus calls out to his troops that "What you do in life echoes in eternity." There’s truth to it in two ways. First, what we do sets off an ongoing series of results. The fact that you are here today, and not somewhere else, changes your life in ways you cannot ever know, and other lives around you long after you leave.

Second, this world is connected to the Kingdom Jesus was always preaching about. He talked about how the Kingdom is brought near when we accept a child in his name, or offer a cup of cold water, or bless someone, or when two or more gather in his name. The eternal Kingdom is refracted into ours in that moment, and it affects us in more ways than we might realize. And then we become those water droplets, with the Kingdom in us, touching still others’ lives.

That’s why I like this idea of refraction; it is bending the light of Christ and the Kingdom and bringing it into the shadows, sometimes with words and actions, and still other times simply by being there. God’s Spirit can refract his light in powerful positive ways. Thank God that we get to be a part of that! Say, "Thank you, God!"

That’s why we’re told to show our joy. "Rejoice," Paul said, "and again I say, Rejoice!" (Philippians 4:4) That’s why we take initiative when we see that someone is down or hurting or alone. That’s why we will encourage even perfect strangers with just a word of kindness or a smile. It’s why we pray, asking God to work through us, and through Messiah Lutheran Church. We want to refract his Kingdom into this world and watch the light show! Again, we get to be a part of this, so say, "Thank you, Lord!"

But if this idea of refraction is too big or strange, then I think it is just as good to keep it simple and remember that we are called to reflect our Savior, our Christianity through our lives. We say it at Baptism, let others see your good works and give glory to whom? To God. When we feel or see or hear beauty in this church, we know whom to thank. We may thank the singers or the choir for being the instruments for reflecting and connecting us to the Kingdom for a moment, but all our praise and amen’s belong to? …to God.

We don’t have complete control over all these refractive and reflective moments. But I’ve already mentioned that Jesus gave us many instances when he promised to be near, in worship and prayer, in kindness and giving, in accepting or blessing a child in his name, in forgiving, in reading his scripture, in holy or praiseful song, or whenever we invite him to share in our grief or joy.

We were made in God’s image, really to be the image, the reflection, of God our Father. The Fall stole that image, or blurred it. It is Christ, his forgiveness, that allows it through again, so that when we do these things, when we sing to his glory, and later sit and listen to someone who is hurting, like so many of you do, then when that person looks at you, they see a reflection of someone even more than you, they experience God… the true God who loves them, cares for them, as if they were loveable, worthwhile, … and even forgivable.

We are never called to sit on the mountaintop. Like Moses, like Jesus and the disciples, we come down every Sunday, and go into the mission field, and through the ways we respond to whatever we bring from here, others will see an ambient glory shining off of us, not our light, but from Jesus, off of us and into their lives.

And thank the Lord, we get to be a part of this. Say, "Thank you, Jesus." Amen.