Re-Creation

John 12:20-33
20 Now among those who went up to worship at the festival were some Greeks. ²¹They came to Philip, who was from Bethsaida in Galilee, and said to him, ‘Sir, we wish to see Jesus.’ ²²Philip went and told Andrew; then Andrew and Philip went and told Jesus. ²³Jesus answered them, ‘The hour has come for the Son of Man to be glorified. ²⁴Very truly, I tell you, unless a grain of wheat falls into the earth and dies, it remains just a single grain; but if it dies, it bears much fruit. ²⁵Those who love their life lose it, and those who hate their life in this world will keep it for eternal life. ²⁶Whoever serves me must follow me, and where I am, there will my servant be also. Whoever serves me, the Father will honor.
27 ‘Now my soul is troubled. And what should I say—“Father, save me from this hour”? No, it is for this reason that I have come to this hour. ²⁸Father, glorify your name.’ Then a voice came from heaven, ‘I have glorified it, and I will glorify it again.’ ²⁹The crowd standing there heard it and said that it was thunder. Others said, ‘An angel has spoken to him.’ ³⁰Jesus answered, ‘This voice has come for your sake, not for mine. ³¹Now is the judgement of this world; now the ruler of this world will be driven out. ³²And I, when I am lifted up from the earth, will draw all people ³³He said this to indicate the kind of death he was to die. to myself.’

Have you ever heard the saying, brown is the new black? Well, for me, Saturday is the new Sunday. Growing up, Sunday would be a day of worship and recreation; a day to worship and play. While my Saturdays now sit conspicuously absent of any formal or liturgical worship, it is still a day of play. It is a day of recreation, but it is also a day of re-creation.

How can something be born again if it does not die? A tree cannot become a tree and bear fruit without “dying” as a seed, or a single grain. Jesus’ call is similar to us: “Those who love their life lose it, and those who hate their life in this world will keep eternal life (John 12:25).”

This does not mean that we go about weeping and wailing for our present condition. It does not mean that we lament and wail in order to get into heaven. For me, it is about finding what matters to God. Service with the poor. Listening to friends. Sharing in worship with God’s children. Times of play are important, not just for the physical recreation it provides, but for the reminder that we are not isolated individuals. We are children of God. We are loved. We are called into fellowship and joy divine.

Prayer: God of play and rest, in our times of recreation, may we experience the re-creation of our relationship with you and others. Amen.