No partiality

By Pastor Craig Pederson

Peter began to speak to [the people]: “I truly understand that God shows no partiality, but in every nation anyone who fears him and does what is right is acceptable to him. …  All the prophets testify about him that everyone who believes in him receives forgiveness of sins through his name.”
— Acts 10: 34-35, 43

The granular, expansive, inclusive nature of Resurrection amazes me the older I get.

The granularity comes when I consider how every individual, beloved child of God experiences Resurrection in their own unique time, circumstance, and setting. The expansiveness comes as I ponder how Resurrection has been received and celebrated by God’s people, God’s creatures, and God’s creation for over two millennia. The inclusivity strikes me when I witness the incredible variety of faith communities that gather on Easter morning to proclaim the good news that out of death comes new life.

“Every individual, beloved child of God experiences Resurrection in their own unique time, circumstance, and setting.”

The gift of travel reminds us of the diversity of God’s people, creatures, and creation. My wife Lisa, our daughter Nora, and I returned last week from a spring break trip to the desert Southwest – a destination where we had not traveled before. We spent three days in Phoenix, then another four days in the Palms Springs, California area.

While there, we had a kind of early Resurrection experience: It rained in both places! Fortunately for us, it was only one day in each location (but not fortunate for those areas thirsty for precipitation).

Rain, like Resurrection, shows no partiality.

 

AFTER THE RAIN, the desert produces some of the most amazing scents and scenes imaginable. Plants and flowers seemed to pulsate as they absorbed moisture from the air and land. Cacti puffed up to drink in the water and store it until the next rainfall. Soil that lay dry for weeks smelled both sweet and stinky at the same time, as if confused about what to do with this unscheduled blessing.

That short stint of rain kicked God’s people into gear as well. Work crews speedily covered construction areas that were not designed to deal with rain, then just as speedily uncovered them to allow the sun to help dry things out. Roofers, gardeners, and landscapers received a short break, then accelerated their pace to make up for lost time and to respond to the spurt of growth produced by this liquid infusion.

They were working hard. I hope they – like the creation they were tending – experienced Resurrectin this Easter.

“We returned home just in time to be greeted by another precipitation event: Eight inches of heavy snow with a two-inch rain chaser.”

We returned home just in time to be greeted by another precipitation event: Eight inches of heavy snow with a two-inch rain chaser. It was a harsh transition for our spring break-spoiled selves, but those were inches of new life for a moisture-starved landscape.

From the immediacy and intimacy of our personal lives to the cosmic expanse of time, Creation longs for Resurrection. Thanks be to God that Christ is Risen! He is Risen indeed! Alleluia!