It began with a simple taste of fruit from the tree. It seemed innocent. And so one and then the other feasted on what was forbidden. In a few bites all humanity became involved. Now enticed by the knowledge of the fruit, our first parents shifted their gaze from their creator. Adam and Eve saw their nakedness, they saw the outside of paradise; they saw the toil of the soil, they saw the pains of childbirth. They saw death. But they couldn’t see God.
And so time passed. And there was the ark and the rainbow, the father of nations, the near sacrifice of a son, the freedom from Pharaoh, and the journey into a new land. And still the peoples’ gaze was averted. They saw flooding waters, they saw idols of gold, they saw false gods aplenty. But they couldn’t see God. In the midst of it all God implored his people, he begged his people, saying SHEMA, HEAR: You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your might. Turn your gaze to me, just a little. But it was so tough to hear. So tough to see. So tough to turn.
And so time passed. And rather than just give them words, God sent his Word, his son, in the fullness of time. Like a crack of lightening in the darkest night he began to turn their gaze. They saw that the blind could see, they saw that the deaf could hear, they saw that the lame could walk. Heads turned. But tempers also burned. Therefore, this son, this Jesus, knew he would not be with the people for long. So he gave them the greatest commandment: SHEMA, HEAR: You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind. A few simple words to guide their lives. But it was so tough to hear. So tough to see. So they averted their gaze and he hung on a tree.
And so time passed and here we are today. Some few centuries later, but still our gaze is drawn in so many directions. We see material goods that keep catching our eye. We see endless hours on the internet tweeting and poking and friending and searching; We see there’s work, and work and more work; We see our kids need to be brought to their activities and everyone wants their time. We see that there’s a party to go to this weekend and a football game to see. We see that the leaves still need to be raked and the oil needs to be changed and the trash taken out. We see so many things…The time ticks away and we are already at the end of the day. And we’ve barely had time to gaze upon God.
But the reality for most of us is this: we desire to be better spouses, and better parents, and better sons and daughters and better friends. And so the weekend comes along. With our last bit of effort we load up the mini-van and shuffle the clan to Church. We’re looking for something, for anything. Anything to help us through this modern day exile from paradise. We pray to God silently that Father or the deacon has something to say to us today. If there is nothing from them we hope at least the coffee will be good. And then the Gospel is read, and the words hit us:
You shall love the Lord, your God, with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind.
The words are so simple. But the statement leaves us feeling stretched, exhausted, more tired. God is not asking for just some of our being—he is asking for all of our being. Our time, our energy, our life, our love--everything. But we are not sure we have any more to give.
And so all we can do is turn our gaze just a little more to God.
And from this slight turn of our gaze and a whole lot of God’s grace we see a food pantry filled with workers and nourishment for those in need. We see a high school girl struggling with depression finding shelter and hope in her youth group. We see groups reaching out to those who are marginalized and shunned. We see the widow finding comfort. The pews beginning to fill up. People beginning to sing. Healing taking place. And marriages strengthened. We don’t see the dishes and meals and chores and work and struggle go away, but they take on a new meaning of love.
And the Paradise of Eden becomes not something lost in the annals of time, buried deep in the first book of the Bible, or some mythological place. Rather, Eden appears here, around this altar, with us all gathered together simply trying to live the life we are called to live.
And so time passes. We are called to go to our eternal home. And we join the angels’ choirs saying: we love the Lord our God, with all our heart, with all our soul, and with all our might. Our gaze is fixed on God and that is where it will always be!
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