8Nov2008 1Jn 1:1

¹That which was from the beginning, which we have heard, which we have seen with our eyes, which we have looked at and our hands have touched—this we proclaim concerning the Word of life.

What we so often forget in our day when the Gospel is so quickly dismissed, is that the people who wrote the New Testament actually experienced the things they were writing about. John, the author of the three short letters and the Gospel bearing his name, lived through these events. His journey with Jesus began when he heard about Jesus and at his first opportunity followed. He was there for the events recorded in the Gospels. He saw the miracles and probably got the first century equivalent of a “high five” from people in the crowd. He smelled the fish cooking over the fire and listened with his own ears to Jesus’ words. His feet got tired as they walked together from town to town. He helped gather the bread and fish after the miraculous multiplication meal. There was no doubt in his mind about the realities of what he experienced and about what he was passing along to those who did not have these same experiences. Unlike some religions in the world, Christianity incorporates all of human experience, all our senses. Without those experiences grounded in reality, Christianity falls apart. If there was no physical body nailed to the cross, there could be no resurrection. And without the resurrection, Christianity is nothing but a lie, because if Jesus did not rise from the dead His message is false. That is why John begins this short letter emphasizing the senses. Every part of his being witnesses to the reality of what he experienced. All his senses pointed in the same direction, all pointed to the reality of life in Jesus. Are you paying attention to life enough to God’s presence in your everyday existence? Can you hear His voice in the song birds and rustling leaves, His scent in the freshly cut grass, His touch in the gentle cool breeze? Can you taste the sweetness of God in an ear of fresh corn? Do you see the smile of God in the face of a newborn, the hope of God presented in the Scriptures? If not, I want to encourage you to begin again, using all you senses to tune in to God’s presence in your everyday life.