Homily For The Feast Day of St. John
St. John whose feast we celebrate today penned the Epistle and Gospel appointed for today. His first general epistle is most appropriate to Christmas when we celebrate Christ coming in the flesh, truly becoming man and dwelling among us. St. John begins by linking together the Word of God that brought about the creation with the same Word that he had seen and felt with his hands. It is not enough to have heard the Word of God, for Israel ‘heard’ God’s voice in the Old Testament. St. John’s seeing is more convincing but to have touched the Lord is conclusive proof that the Word “became flesh and dwelled among us.” Here, St. John presents us with a series of incrementally more convincing proofs. “Seeing is a more convincing proof than hearing of; “ Here, St. John and the other disciples beheld him. To behold is to examine closely.
They had closely examined the glory of God in Christ in his Transfiguration and through his miracles. Of course, St. John adds to years of observation the even more important confirmation of touch. In fact, he uses the phrase handling. Not a passing touch but a familiarity of touch known through varied circumstances. The disciples had touched the Lord, felt repeatedly the reality of his resurrected body. There is no greater invitation than that given to Thomas to feel the wounds. Handle, as it were, the marks of the spear. Hearing, seeing then touching, all the senses bore witness to Christ coming in the flesh and being resurrected unto a new, glorified body after his crucifixion.
The child incarnated and born during Christmas, truly came in the flesh to purchase eternal life for his people.
He is the foundation of fellowship, of unity between Christians and of their relationship with God. Indeed, the purpose of St. John’s writings conveying the Gospel of Jesus Christ is joy. That our joy may abound, be complete, full. St. John uses the motif of light and darkness to contrast evil with good; light reveals, it exposes, indeed, it cleans. By contrast, we are born dwelling in darkness. Our fellowship with Christ is predicated on admitting our need - we have need of the light, we have sin to confess and we need one capable of cleansing us from those sins. What encouragement we receive this afternoon. It is Christmas - Christ came into the world to save sinners. We hear from St. John in the Epistle words of encouragement - If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. If we say that we have not sinned, we make him a liar, and his word is not in us.
In other words, if we confess that we have failed God, harmed others by our thoughts, words or deeds or failure to act for their benefit, then God is “faithful and just” to forgive us our sins. “God is faithful to believers, because he is carrying through on his commitment to forgive and purify those who confess their sins, something that necessitated the giving of his Son to be the atoning sacrifice for their sins” God is just to forgive because he accepts the perfect life of Jesus in our stead. Jesus acts in our stead and gives to God the perfectness that God’s holiness demands but we can’t give.
Moreover, he cleanses us from all unrighteousness. This is different from justification through Christ’s blood once and for all. This is the daily cleansing, sanctification, in which the Christian walking in obedience to God enjoys God’s presence and fellowship and the communion with other Christians.
St. John mentions that he was a witness to all these proofs of Christ’s real life, death and resurrection. Witness here is “martyr re o” - the term used of those who bore witness to Christ in death. In these three feast days immediately after Christmas Day, we celebrate the cost of bearing witness of Christ to the world, in all its varied consequences. St. Stephen was a martyr, a witness to Christ, in his death. For he was a martyr in will and deed. Tomorrow, we celebrate the faithfulness of God in the witness of Holy Innocents who died because of Herod’s murderous paranoia. They were not aware of Christ’s claims as Lord but they died in fact because of his coming in the flesh. Today, we commemorate St. John who was a martyr in will but not in deed. He was the only member of the 12 apostles to die a natural death - of old age. He speaks to generations of Christians, blessed with relative peace and freedom of religion.
His feast day speaks to us of the need to be living sacrifices. Having wills completely devoted to Jesus, willing to give ourselves for Him physically if need be but also willing to live in and for Him day by day for our whole lives. Living out the words of St. Paul in Romans 12 - I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service. St. John would have us join our hearts with his by walking with Him in the fellowship of Jesus Christ through loving obedience, bearing witness in life as well as in death. Amen.