Calvary Presbyterian Church
The Rev. Debra May Cerra
March 1, 2009
Genesis 9:8-17 (NRSV)
Then God said to Noah and to his sons with him, 9 "As for me, I am establishing my covenant with you and your descendants after you, 10 and with every living creature that is with you, the birds, the domestic animals, and every animal of the earth with you, as many as came out of the ark. 11 I establish my covenant with you, that never again shall all flesh be cut off by the waters of a flood, and never again shall there be a flood to destroy the earth." 12 God said, "This is the sign of the covenant that I make between me and you and every living creature that is with you, for all future generations: 13 I have set my bow in the clouds, and it shall be a sign of the covenant between me and the earth. 14 When I bring clouds over the earth and the bow is seen in the clouds, 15 I will remember my covenant that is between me and you and every living creature of all flesh; and the waters shall never again become a flood to destroy all flesh. 16 When the bow is in the clouds, I will see it and remember the everlasting covenant between God and every living creature of all flesh that is on the earth." 17 God said to Noah, "This is the sign of the covenant that I have established between me and all flesh that is on the earth."

Mark 1:9-15 (NRSV)
In those days Jesus came from Nazareth of Galilee and was baptized by John in the Jordan. 10 And just as he was coming up out of the water, he saw the heavens torn apart and the Spirit descending like a dove on him. 11 And a voice came from heaven, "You are my Son, the Beloved; with you I am well pleased." 12 And the Spirit immediately drove him out into the wilderness. 13 He was in the wilderness forty days, tempted by Satan; and he was with the wild beasts; and the angels waited on him. 14 Now after John was arrested, Jesus came to Galilee, proclaiming the good news of God, 15 and saying, "The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God has come near; repent, and believe in the good news."

“Good News!”

            Good news is something that brings a smile to your face; something you want to share; something that others want to hear! Good news can be about people, places or things. Good news can bring a sense of joy, can relieve stress, and can make a difference in our lives.
            Think about some good news which came to you suddenly. Maybe it was the announcement of a new baby in the family, an engagement, or a new puppy. Maybe it was the surprise of a long overdue vacation or a new position at work or a generous pay raise. We need to take a moment to get in touch with the feeling that embraces good news. That's especially helpful when there is so much bad news around.
We certainly hear enough bad news these days don’t we? Newspapers, television, and radio bombard us with news about wildfires and earthquakes, plane crashes and car accidents, job losses and economic downturn. We hear the words recession and depression and we feel – depressed.
We begin to wonder if there is any good news to be found. This sense of doom and gloom has repeated itself over and over throughout the years. People have faced wars and disease, earthquakes and tsunamis, famine and corruption – significant events that have impacted the good of the world.
In the book of Genesis, the rise of the wickedness of humankind is recounted: “God saw that human evil was out of control. People thought evil, imagined evil—evil, evil, evil from morning to night. God was sorry that he had made the human race in the first place; it broke his heart. God said, "I'll get rid of my ruined creation, make a clean sweep: people, animals, snakes and bugs, birds—the works. I'm sorry I made them." (6:5-7) There was bad news everywhere. Truth, hope and peace had been purged from society.
            But there was one man who was decent; his name was Noah. “Noah was a good man, a man of integrity in his community. Noah walked with God.” (6:9) Through the great flood, all living things were blotted out from the earth. But, because Noah was a godly man, his life was spared as well as those that were with him in the ark.
            God blessed Noah and his sons and said to them, “Be fruitful and multiply, and fill the earth.” (Gen 9:1) And God established a covenant with Noah and his family. God promised that never again would all flesh be cut off by the waters of a flood. And never again would there be a flood to destroy the earth. God said, “I'm putting my rainbow in the clouds, a sign of the covenant between me and the Earth. From now on, when I form a cloud over the Earth and the rainbow appears in the cloud, I'll remember my covenant between me and you and everything living, that never again will floodwaters destroy all life. When the rainbow appears in the cloud, I'll see it and remember the eternal covenant between God and everything living, every last living creature on Earth." (Gen 9:13-16) God’s word is true. This is good news – hopeful news – new that brings peace to the hearts of people.
            A rainbow in the sky became the eternal reminder of the good news of God’s covenant with Noah and all people. We still find rainbows in the sky, but do they still remind us of good news? Does God have good news for us today – news that can bring hope and peace?
            Think back to our gospel reading for this morning. It begins with the baptism of Jesus by John in the Jordan. Mark then writes: “And just as [Jesus] was coming up out of the water, he saw the heavens torn apart and the Spirit descending like a dove on him. And a voice came from heaven, ‘You are my Son, the Beloved; with you I am well pleased.’ And the Spirit immediately drove him out into the wilderness. He was in the wilderness forty days, tempted by Satan; and he was with the wild beasts; and the angels waited on him. Now after John was arrested, Jesus came to Galilee, proclaiming the good news of God, and saying, ‘The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God has come near; repent, and believe in the good news.’”(10-15)
            Jesus – baptized by John; declared God’s Son; tempted by Satan – proclaimed the good news of God. Jesus said: “The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God has come near; repent and believe the good news.”  
Jesus tells us to change our ways and believe the Good News of God. When he calls forth God’s good news, what does Jesus mean? What news is so good that it can pronounce truth, bring us hope and grant us an abiding peace. How does the Good News of God relieve our stress and make a difference in our lives?
You see, Jesus Christ is not only the bearer of good news; Jesus is the Good News. Jesus is the good news of truth. Until Jesus, people could only guess at who God is and fumble to find God. Job cried, “If I knew where on earth to find him [God], I'd go straight to him.” (23-3) With the coming of Jesus, we now see clearly what God is like. No longer are we left in the dark; God, in Jesus Christ, has become Savior and Lord. The truth has become flesh. Jesus Christ is God incarnate.
            Jesus is the good news of hope. The ancient world – even the world during Noah’s time - was a pessimistic world. Think back to what God said about the neighbors of Noah: “I'll get rid of my ruined creation, make a clean sweep: people, animals, snakes and bugs, birds—the works. I'm sorry I made them.” (Gen 1:6) Evil was everywhere and hope did not prevail. Humans felt defeated and deflated; there was no peace. They had nowhere to turn to find a way out.
We may still find evil around us. We may sense a ominous cloud of defeat. But our good news is that we have Jesus! It is in Christ Jesus that we find hope. The book of Romans reminds us: “Therefore, since we are justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have obtained access to this grace in which we stand; and we boast in our hope of sharing the glory of God.” (5:1-2) Knowing Jesus gives hope to our discouraged hearts.
            Jesus is the good news of peace. In our daily lives, both sin and righteousness tug at us, as though we have a split personality between good and evil. In the coming of Jesus, this split was united. No longer does evil have a chance of winning the struggle. We find victory over our warring selves through the forgiveness and love of Jesus Christ.
            As one who has served time in prison and has since spent most of his life working in them, Chuck Colson will never forget the most unusual prison he ever visited. Called Humaita Prison, it was in Sao Jose dos Campos in Brazil. Formerly a government prison, it was now operated by Prison Fellowship Brazil as an alternative prison, without armed guards or high-tech security. Instead it ran on Christian principles of love of God and respect for men.
            Humaita had only two full-time staff; the rest of the work was done by the 730 inmates serving time for everything from murder and assault to robbery and drug-related crimes. Every man was assigned another inmate to whom he was accountable. In addition, each prisoner was assigned a volunteer mentor from the outside who worked with him during his term and when released. Prisoners took classes on character development and were encouraged to participate in religious and educational programs.
            When Chuck visited the prison, he found the inmates smiling. The place was clean; the men took care in their work. There was a sense of peace.
            Chuck Colson saw the answer when his inmate guide escorted him to the notorious cell once used for solitary punishment. Now, he told Chuck, ti always houses the same inmate. As they reached the end of the long concrete corridor and the guide put the key into the lock, he paused and asked, “Are you sure you want to go in there?”
            “Of course,” Chuck replied impatiently, “I’ve been in isolation cells all over the world.” Slowly the inmate swung open the massive door, and Chuck saw the prisoner in that cell: a crucifix, beautifully carved – Jesus, hanging on the cross.
            Almost in a whisper, the guide said, “He’s doing time for the rest of us.”
            Jesus said, “Believe in the good news.” To do so simply means to take Jesus at His word, to believe that God is the kind of God that Jesus has told us about. We must believe that God so loved the world that God will make any sacrifice to bring us back into the fold.
You see, the ultimate good news of Jesus Christ is the gift of salvation. When we accept Jesus as Lord and Savior, we are liberated from our sins. Christ gives us the power to live life victoriously as children of God – grounded in truth, embraced by hope, bathed in peace – all received through God’s good news! The message of Jesus Christ is good news indeed!