REVELATION 7:9-17

After this I looked, and there before me was a great multitude that no one could count, from every nation, tribe, people and language, standing before the throne and before the Lamb. They were wearing white robes and were holding palm branches in their hands. And they cried out in a loud voice: Salvation belongs to our God, who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb.’ All the angels were standing around the throne and around the elders and the four living creatures. They fell down on their faces before the throne and worshiped God, saying: Amen! Praise and glory and wisdom and thanks and honor and power and strength be to our God for ever and ever. Amen! Then one of the elders asked me, ‘These in white robes- who are then, and where did they come from?’ I answered, ‘Sir, you know.’ And he said, ‘These are they who have come out of the great tribulation; they have washed their robes and made them white in the blood of the Lamb. Therefore, ‘they are before the throne of God and serve him day and night in his temple; and he who sits on the throne will shelter them with his presence. ‘Never again will they hunger; never again will they thirst. The sun will not beat down on them, nor any scorching heat. For the Lamb at the center of the throne will be their shepherd; he will lead them to springs of living water.’ ‘And God will wipe away every tear from their eyes.’ 

Let us pray,

May the words of my mouth, and the meditations of all of our hearts, be pleasing and acceptable to you, our rock and our redeemer…

I am delighted that All Saints Day falls on a Sunday this year. Usually it falls on a random weekday. I am excited it fell on a Sunday so that we can celebrate it together in worship. Now I imagine some of you are confused by my excitement. Do Presbyterians even celebrate All Saints Day? I thought that was just for Catholics. I imagine some of you are wondering right now.

Don’t worry. Presbyterians indeed celebrate All Saints Day. But our understanding of sainthood is a little bit different than how our Catholic brothers and sisters understand it. We Presbyterians turn to this passage in Revelation to help us understand what a saint is, and what a saint is called to do.

According to John, a saint is “they who have come out of the great tribulation; they have washed their robes and made them white in the blood of the Lamb.’ John shows us that a saint is anyone who has been baptized into the death and resurrection of Jesus. In baptism we die to all that which separates us from God and take on a new identity- followers of Jesus, children of God. That’s how we interpret John’s vision. According to this definition, I imagine that most of us in this room are saints. Because most of us in this room were baptized. 

On All Saints Day, we remember all the saints who are living now. All the men and women who respond to the call of their baptism by working with God to usher in God’s kingdom on earth. On this day we also remember the saints who have died in the past year. Who have fulfilled the call of their baptisms. And are now dwelling with God in heaven for eternity.

Today I want to talk about both the saints who dwell among us. And the saints who have died in the past year. I think it is fair to say that 2020 has increased the number of saints among us. As I write this, around 9 million Americans have tested positive for covid-19. And, sadly, around 230,000 Americans have died from it. What can their stories tell us about a new creation unfolding in the midst of a pandemic? 

At this point in the pandemic, all of us know someone who has tested positive for the virus. Some of us know someone who has been hospitalized with the virus. A few of us have lost loved ones to this virus. Our efforts to contain the virus have changed our daily lives in profound ways. I want to share just one story of how covid-19 is ushering in a new creation. 

During Holy Week. In April 2020. I got a text message that one of the elders at Emsworth Presbyterian Church. A church we collaborate with for various community events. Tested positive for Covid. At the time we really didn’t know anything about this virus. Was it just a bad flu? Is it just affecting the elderly, and those with pre-existing conditions? This elder, Mark, is not super high risk, so initially I wasn’t too worried.

But his symptoms rapidly became unmanageable. Mark went into the hospital on Good Friday. Soon he wasn’t able to breathe on his own. On Holy Saturday his doctors put him on a ventilator for 12 days. During this time his wife couldn’t visit with him. His pastor couldn’t go pray with him. He spent Easter alone. In the ICU. On a ventilator. For 12 days he floated in that liminal space between life and death.

Then, weirdly, he started to get better. His stats improved to the point where he was able to breath on his own. He entered an experimental trial for remdesivir. A steroid that helped his immune system stop overreacting to the virus. He was then transferred to a nursing home where he received physical therapy and basically learned how to breathe again. A month after he entered the hospital, he was able to come home. Six months after he returned home, he says he feels 85-90% recovered. 

Now Mark has always been a pillar of his community and congregation. I’m sure he’s been serving on Session longer than I’ve been alive. But it’s been really cool to see how surviving Covid 19 has given him a new appreciation for life. He doesn’t take life for granted anymore. He’s more active in his church. He’s even learned how to lead a virtual Sunday school class. When we get together on Tuesdays for Lunch with the Pastor, he asks really thoughtful questions. He always asks me how my cat is doing. 

Mark would also probably be incredibly embarrassed to hear me call him a saint. But I think he is a great example of someone who is coming out of this pandemic responding to the call of his baptism in new and interesting ways. Because the point of celebrating saints is not to put them on a pedestal as holy people set apart in glory. But to see their stories as an example of how God uses the ordinary, holy lives of the believers for his glory, in this and every age. 

On this All Saints Day, I want us to go from this place reflecting on how we are called to participate in the unfolding of God’s kingdom here on earth. To do that, I think it’s helpful to return to our Scripture reading for this morning. Ask anyone who has been through a great tribulation, and they will tell you. Responding to the call of your baptism is no easy task. But the good news is that we do not do it alone. God goes out ahead of us. And God is with us always.

John says: ‘Never again will they hunger; never again will they thirst. The sun will not beat down on them, nor any scorching heat. For the Lamb at the center of the throne will be their shepherd; he will lead them to springs of living water.’ ‘And God will wipe away every tear from their eyes.’

Even as creation changes all around us, God promises to be with us always. While we may not exactly know what the rest of this year will look like. We know that God will protect us. God will provide for us. And God will comfort us during hard times. I think this is what separates a saint from an ordinary Christian. Saints believe that God is with them always. Ordinary Christians ask where God is in the midst of challenging seasons. 

One place where we feel God’s presence clearly is when we gather with the saints of every age at the Lord’s Table. At the table we remember Jesus’ last meal with his disciples. We remember God’s promise to be with us always. In this act of breaking bread, and sharing a common cup, we receive healing from the past, peace for this day, and a promise of community for the days ahead. These gifts of the spirit then empower the saints to go out into their communities and do the hard things that usher in God’s kingdom on earth. 

Thanks be to God,

In Jesus’ name, Amen.