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November 1, 2009 Tears in HeavenGrace and peace to you. "3And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, If I were to put together a top ten list of favorite biblical passages, al a David Letterman's The Late Show, verses three and four, written in the Book of Revelation we just heard, would be on the list; ranked anywhere from 7th to 4th. The words aren't particularly beautiful compared to the poetry of the Song of Solomon. They lack the well-formed syntax of the Psalms. Shortcomings aside, they'd be on my top ten list for the theological punch they pack. With a mere fifty words, verses three and four reveal the relationship God desires with and the work God accomplishes for humanity:
These two verses, like the whole of the Book of Revelation, are apocalyptic; that is, giving us a glance at what the future will hold. Apocalyptic writing served to comfort and encourage the faithful in difficult times. It's going on now, but it isn't done yet. It gives us a glimpse of NOW... our present reality, together with a glimpse of BUT NOT YET... an imagined future. Today is All Saint's Day, a day set aside in the church year to remember those who've died and are now counted among the saints of the light in God's heavenly realm. For some, this day comes too soon; a loved one has recently died... we're not ready to embrace the NOW; the emotions are too raw... the finality is too surreal. The NOT YET seems so far off, so distant, so unimaginable. British rock star, Eric Clapton knows well the NOW BUT NOT YET of this day. In March of 1991, four-year-old son, Conor, fell from a window of the family's 53rd Floor New York City apartment building. Conor's tragic death haunted Clapton. Doing what he does best, he wrote a song about the accident. Entitled "Tears in Heaven," it was the Grammy Awards 1993 Song of the Year. Let's listen: (Play first verse... ) Would you know my name I must be strong Would you hold my hand I'll find my way A beautiful, poignant song; it gives expression to the reality Clapton knows, yet is too grieved to embrace... his son is dead. As with others who grieve the death of a loved one, Clapton wants one more... "love you da da"... one more hand in hand walk through Central Park. But this will not be. On this Feast Day of All Saints, who is your Conor? The first time I heard this song, I cried, not for Eric Clapton or Conor. I cried for myself. I cried wondering would my twin brother Bruce know my name, if I saw him in heaven; I cried wondering would my Grandpa Davick hold my hand, if I saw him in heaven... My NOW... my present reality, obscured my BUT NOT YET... an imagined future. But these are the verses that bridge the gap between the now and the not yet: 'See, the home of God is among mortals like Clapton, you, me As Clapton's song continues, he sees one bright ray of hope in the midst of his grief. Let's listen (Play) Beyond the door, He is sure that in heaven there are no tears. That's the source of the song's title: "Tears in Heaven." Tears are for the earth. Tears are grief's constant companion. Tears are grief's way of showing us the pit of emptiness that tugs so heavily upon us in the wake of death. Tears are vital to the healing process. Because through the tears, comes, as Clapton sees, a vision of a place where tears shall be no more... a place where death will be no more... a place where mourning and crying and pain will be no more... This is the promised hope for you and me, and for all the saints who've gone before us. This is the promised hope of the one who is the Alpha and Omega... the one in whom we find our beginning and our end. This is the NOW BUT NOT YET of the Feast Day of All Saints. Thanks be to God. Let us pray. |
St. Paul's Lutheran Church § 824 N. Lewis § Waukegan IL |
