By Rev. Bruce G. Epperly, Ph.D.
“I am confident of this, that the one who began a good work in you will continue to complete it until the day of Jesus Christ And this is my prayer, that your love may overflow more and more with knowledge and full insight to help you to determine what really matters, so that in the day of Christ you may be pure and blameless, having produced the harvest of righteousness that comes through Jesus Christ for the glory and praise of God.” (Philippians 1:6; 9-11)
In my role as Theologian in Residence at Westmoreland Congregational United Church of Christ in Bethesda, Maryland, I am given the opportunity to preach regularly, including twice this Advent Season. As I began preparing for the Second Sunday of Advent, I was struck by the relevance of the Epistle reading, Philippians 1:3-11 to the journey of retirement and aging. Paul is hopeful for the Philippian community as a whole and for its individual members. They have kept the faith as a minority community in a time of trial. God is doing a good work in the Philippian church, and it will be fulfilled in a harvest of righteousness. That is our hope in retirement: that we will continue to grow, that the positive seeds we planted during our professional life and personal growth will come to fruition, and our lives will continue to make a difference to the world around us. That we will produce a harvest of righteousness.
For years, I have concluded my children’s messages in worship with the words: “God loves you. We love you. You matter. You can do something beautiful for God.” I realize that these words are not just addressed to our younger members but to the whole community, the congregation, and each person in attendance, especially to the chronologically older members of our congregation. As elders, we want to matter. That’s why so many of us were involved in the recent presidential election, lead small groups and teach classes at church, and volunteer in programs that improve the lives of young adults and marginalized persons. We want to leave a mark and do something beautiful for God and our neighbor. We want our lives to bear fruit in improving our communities and serving God.
Producing a harvest of righteousness isn’t accidental but comes as a result of cultivating and nurturing the virtues of wellbeing, spiritual growth, and service. A good harvest can continue well beyond our retirement in acts of kindness and care. Jewish mysticism suggests that when you save a soul, it’s as if you are saving the universe. That may seem a tall order to many of us, so I have come up with an alternative statement: the world is saved one moment at a time and when you bring beauty to any moment, you are saving that moment and participating in saving the world.
A good work is going on in your life. It began the moment of your conception and continues to this day. God was there to hear your “born cry” and is with us a guide, companion, and challenger every step of the way. Our good work will even follow us beyond the grave as we join the communion of saints, the good ancestors, whose lives shape future generations. Our harvest of righteousness is even more important today as we may be entering a dark time in our nation’s history in which for many of our leaders and fellow Christians the love of power supplants the power of love and people put self-interest above care for their neighbors, the stranger, and the planet.
The harvest of righteousness, the harvest of the years, may come to fruition in our willingness to take a very different path in our relationships and citizenships: to look beyond self-interest to world loyalty, to let go of power and nurture the leadership of others, and to make our lives a contribution to furthering the moral and spiritual arcs of history.
I will elaborate on paths to this harvest in my January column, but, at the very least, a harvest of righteousness is built on the solid rock of prayer, meditation, intellectual growth, physical wellbeing, generosity, and service to others.
As we seek to produce a harvest of righteousness in our lives and congregations, I will leave you with an image of hope for elders like me: the image of fruitfulness and generativity that inspires faith for today and hope for the future. As I ponder a harvest of righteousness, I remember a hymn sung at my ordination service in 1980, “O Savior (Master) Let Me Walk With Thee.”
In hope that sends a shining ray
Far down the future's broad'ning way,
In peace that only Thou canst give,
With Thee, O Master, let me live.
