Easter 6 - Christian Decision-Making

Acts 16:9-15; John 14:23-29

If you were born any time before the 90s, you are probably familiar with the acronym WWJD. What Would Jesus Do? It was big amongst youth groups, and now that those youth are adults, it’s enjoying something of a resurgence. Christian activists of all stripes have started putting it on signs as they protest in the States and abroad, using WWJD to protect pro-life legislation, to protect pro-choice legislation, to argue against unrestricted immigration, to argue against deportation of illegal immigrants. Christians along the political and moral spectrum genuinely want to know what Jesus would do, and each believes they have the answer. Each of us struggles to figure out what Jesus would have us do in our lives, and we are often afraid of making the wrong decision and letting Jesus down.

And there are so many decisions we have to make. Genuine decisions, across all aspects of our lives. Should I give cash to a homeless person who asks for some? When is a good age for my child to have a cell phone? Should I let them get an Instagram account? Should I have my dear pet who is painfully aging put down? You might be struggling with a decision about when to retire, or whether its time to sell the house and move into an assisted living facility. Maybe you wonder, when I die, do I want to be buried or cremated? As November approaches, the question will become, who should I vote for in the federal election? Throughout our lives, we are faced with a range of real decisions that have genuine impact on ourselves and on those we love, and even on the community at large. And, as Christians, we really do want to know what God would have us do. How can we follow Jesus in our lives? What would Jesus do?

I wish it were easy to know. We live in a very different age than Jesus did, and, honestly, we face different decisions than he did. Jesus didn’t have cell phones, or social media. Jesus didn’t even have electricity. Jesus also didn’t have children. Jesus didn’t live long enough to have to make decisions about aging, and voting for the government was absolutely inconceivable. We can kind of guess at what Jesus might do in certain situations, but they’re just guesses. We have no way of knowing what Jesus would do when it comes to the best way to reduce one’s carbon footprint, or whether to stay in a job that pays the bills but cuts into time with your family and friends, or whether or not to take medication for depression.

Last week in our Gospel reading, we heard Jesus say to the disciples, “Where I am going, you cannot come.” Jesus told his disciples that he was leaving them and that they should love one another. And as they looked concerned and asked questions, he said, “the Advocate, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, will teach you everything, and remind you of all that I have said to you. Peace I leave with you, my peace I give to you.”

It would seem in this passage that Jesus is redirecting us from the question, “What Would Jesus Do?” to the question, “What is the Holy Spirit saying to us right now?” It makes for an awkward acronym and doesn’t fit on a friendship bracelet, but it really is the guiding question for Christians faced with a big decision. What is the Holy Spirit saying right now?

You see, our New Testament scriptures tell us very clearly that it was the Spirit of God who guided the disciples and the early church after Jesus left. All four Gospels tell us that the Spirit of God descended on Jesus during his baptism and guided him in the way he should go. The Book of Acts recounts many stories when the Holy Spirit came upon the disciples, and upon Paul, and guided their way. The letters of Paul make frequent reference to the Holy Spirit and the fruits of the Spirit, which include kindness, goodness, and self-control––all things that we need to make good decisions.

Above all, the Holy Spirit brings peace. And this is how I think the Holy Spirit helps us in our decision-making, no matter what that decision is. By bringing peace both as we make our decisions, and after we’ve made them. 

The right decision, the decision that God would have us make, no matter what it is, is the decision that we make out of a sense of peace, not anxiety or fear. The worst mind-set for making a decision is one where we are in a state of anxiety. When we are afraid of what might come next, when we are worried about trying not to repeat the mistakes of the past, when we are seized by panic, then we do not have the space in our heads or our hearts to consider what God wants. The First Commandment says, You are to love the Lord your God, which Luther interprets as, “We are to fear, love, and trust God above all things.” When we make decisions out of fear or anxiety or worry, we are putting what we fear above God, and I don’t know that that’s ever turned out well.

Likewise, the decisions that God would have us make bring peace. The phrase, “the peace that passes all understanding,” is not some poetic phrase. It really means that. Sometimes the “right” decision makes no logical sense, and yet it feels right. It brings peace. We make it and all of a sudden we can breathe. The worries and anxieties that were hanging over our head disappear. A peace that makes no sense but that is very real comes to rest on us.

So how do we get to that place of peace or recognize it when we have it? Well, I’m going to offer a few suggestions, and take them as you will. I find they work for me, but everybody has their own discernment process, as we call it in the church, and I’m not trying to tell anybody how to make decisions, just hoping that something I say might be helpful.

Psalm 46:10 says, “Be still and know that I am God.” I used to have that on my old cell phone, especially because when it rang “in the old days,” it was always an emergency. But I recommend that every day, you spend some time being still, letting the world pass you by, even if all you can manage at first is five minutes. Hide the phone, and spend five minutes in listening prayer (not asking prayer), in mindfulness, in meditation, in anything that lets you and God just be. Now I’ll tell you, nothing magical will happen that first day, or even that first month. But over time, you will begin to realize that letting the world go for five or ten minutes a day does not result in the walls crashing down around you. And you will begin to experience actual peace. Peace in your spirit, peace in your body, peace in your mind. You will become more able to make decisions from that state of peace, and to recognize the peace that the right decision brings. It is when we are at peace, freed from anxieties and fears and worries, that we can finally hear the Holy Spirit sharing the words of God with us.

Another important part of discernment or Christian decision-making is to check with others. Luther used to get quite concerned about people mistaking their own delusions for the word of God, and so he always recommended that Christians check with one another when they think have received a revelation from God. This is why, in the Lutheran church, people can’t just say, “Oh, God says I’m supposed to be a pastor, therefore make me one!” There are committees upon committees, along with bishops, seminary professors, and congregations who must affirm that person’s call in order for that person to be ordained, and to find work as a pastor. In a sense, the Holy Spirit is very democratic––if God wants a particular community decision to be made, the Holy Spirit will share that with more than just one person. In the book of Acts, the Holy Spirit came upon the group of disciples at Pentecost, not just upon one. When Paul travelled to Macedonia, he travelled with Timothy and Silas, after receiving the approval of the elders in Jerusalem and Antioch. When Lydia was baptized, and wanted Paul to stay at her house, she said, “If you have judged me to be faithful to the Lord, come and stay at my home.” She asked for Paul’s input. As Christians, we make decisions trusting that the Holy Spirit is working within each believer in the community. We check in with people who are in the same situations as us, and with those who are different. With young and old. With women and men. With experienced Christians and with those new to the faith. We explore the different options available, and we talk with others about what might bring peace, and where God might be working.

And then, after I’ve done that, I like to check in with God again, which means checking in with myself. I ask, Am I making this decision out of worry or out of hope? Am I trying to run away or escape from something, or I am moving towards and embracing something? Since I have experienced the peace that passes all understanding, I ask myself, do I have misgivings about this decision, or does it feel right? I ask myself, does this decision give me a feeling of righteousness or does it give me a feeling of illogical peace? And I sit, and I listen.

Now I’ll be honest, sometimes even though I’ve done all these things, God doesn’t give me an answer. And I don’t know if that means I’m trying to rush things or if God really doesn’t care. It’s entirely possible that there are certain decisions God leaves entirely up to us. We cannot make God give us answers. And I know that even when I do all these things, my decision might still be wrong. I might still be misunderstanding what the Holy Spirit wants me to do right now. No matter how long we sit in prayer, no matter how many people we talk with, no matter how pure our intentions, we might still make the wrong decisions. We are not God, after all. We are only human. The Holy Spirit does not provide us with a magic 8-ball.

That being said, the Holy Spirit does provide us with grace. Whether your decisions bring about good or ill, whether they are God’s will or only your own, whether they are what Jesus would do or never do in a million years, you can be confident that the Holy Spirit remains with you, blessing you with forgiveness and love, offering you peace again and again, as many times as necessary. And so, whatever decision you may be struggling with this week, or this month, “do not let your hearts be troubled, and do not be afraid.” The Spirit of God––the Advocate, the Helper––is with you. Thanks be to God. Amen.