00:00Act 5, Church
00:07Stand-up comics often use something called a callback.
00:11A callback is a joke made near the end of a set that references a joke made earlier.
00:17It's effective because it requires no setup.
00:21The comic can simply say one phrase, and the house will erupt with laughter.
00:26It's like having an inside joke with a friend.
00:28All it takes is one reference, and you're transported back to an earlier time, both of
00:34you seeing a dotted line connecting what happened in the past to what is happening in the present.
00:40Callbacks are not limited to comedy.
00:43Other storytellers use them, too.
00:46Verse 22 of today's passage in John is a callback in God's story.
00:51It says that Jesus breathed on his disciples, granting them his presence through the Spirit
00:57and his authority to forgive sins.
00:59This moment in Act 5 calls us back to the beginning of Act 1, when God breathed life into Adam in
01:06Genesis 2.
01:08The writer John is drawing a dotted line for us.
01:11It's like he is saying, remember how God created life with his breath?
01:16Jesus will create new life through his church.
01:19Act 5 in God's story is called, Church, because it is about how Jesus' story is on display to the
01:27world through his followers.
01:29God likes to work through imperfect, often broken, sinful, people.
01:34Think of the people we've read about this week.
01:36Adam and Eve, Abram, Moses, David, Isaiah, Paul, each one had their own weaknesses and sins,
01:43yet God used them to tell his story.
01:45As a follower of Jesus, Act 5 is about you.
01:50You are part of the church, the next imperfect person that God has sent to retell Jesus' story.
01:57This isn't always easy.
01:59Sharing faith feels vulnerable.
02:02You open yourself to criticism or you wonder if the person you're talking to will think you're
02:07crazy.
02:08The world can be a cynical place.
02:11No one wants to get stung.
02:13When you feel this way, try a callback.
02:15Connect something in your life today with what God has done for you in the past.
02:21You may not have answers to tough theological questions, and you may not be able to quote
02:26many Bible verses, but no one is asking you to.
02:30All you have to do is talk about how Jesus has made a difference in your life.
02:35You can share your own story.
02:37No one knows it better than you.
02:39Reflection
02:40How do you feel when you talk to others about your faith?
02:44Pray about those feelings now.
02:47Name them and bring them to God.
02:49How does your understanding of God change or grow when you consider that, with all his power,
02:55he chooses imperfect people to tell his story?
02:58How has your relationship with Jesus positively affected your life?
03:03Is the answer something you could share with another person?
03:07Prayer
03:08Dear God, you are powerful and wise.
03:11From the beginning of your story, you've shared your love through imperfect people.
03:16Will you use me too?
03:18Amen.
03:18Amen.
