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SUNDAY, APRIL 20, 2008

THE FIFTH SUNDAY OF EASTER

John 14:1-14 (No hackers in heaven)

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TODAY’S SERMON THEME:

Despite what some people think, you cannot do EVERYTHING with a computer these days. There are limits. For no matter how hard you try, you cannot "hack" your way into heaven. You also cannot buy your way in, cheat your way in, charm your way in, or argue your way in. The only way into heaven is by humbling ourselves before the Lord. There is NO easier, softer way to get in.

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1. Have you noticed how many news stories are coming out of China these days? One after another after another. Stories about protests, finances, foreign policies, athletes, and diplomats. There's a simple reason behind the non-stop news onslaught from the People's Republic: With the Summer Olympics only four months away in Beijing, the world is watching. And China is doing everything it can to present its best face to the world. I was reminded this past week of China's first official web site on the Internet. It debuted in the year 2000, and it was a breakthrough for the communist government in charge in China. It was a breakthrough because the purpose of the site was to list the government's latest measures to improve civil rights for all its people. It was a major change in policy. The Chinese government wanted the world to read for itself what China was doing to help its own people. Unfortunately, THAT is not what the world read. Within four hours of its debut on the Internet, disaster struck. Computer hackers invaded the brand new web site and superimposed a new message that said this: "People in China have no rights at all. None. And WHY in the world would the U.S. government send them billions of dollars and the best computer technology in the world? And WHY did we grant China "most favored nation" trade status? ARE WE CRAZY??" The site was pulled from the Internet, rewritten, debugged, and re-posted. Within a few minutes, it was hacked again.

2. That's not all. A few months after the debacle with the Chinese web site, leaders from all over the world traveled to Brazil for an international environmental conference. At the time, the U.S. was represented by Vice President Al Gore. Just before the conference began, a web site was put up on the Internet with volumes of information about the conference -- its purpose and its goals. Within an hour, people who logged in to the web site were greeted NOT with environmental news or conference news, but with hard-core pornography . . . and with crude words in a dozen or more languages. Again, computer hackers were at work.

3. A few weeks after that, the web site of the New York Times was vandalized. So were the web sites of the Associated Press, the government of India, and the nation of Portugal. And so were web sites for dozens of multinational corporations and commercial organizations. Everywhere we looked on the Internet, web sites were being "hacked." AND IT WAS ALL PART OF A GROWING MOVEMENT KNOWN AS POLITICAL HACKTIVISM. It is a movement that has invaded, vandalized, and rewritten some of the most secure sites on the Internet. Including sites belonging to the U.S. government. Even the public web site for the CIA -- the Central Intelligence Agency -- was hit by hackers. Not too long ago, a New York Times reporter interviewed a group of young Mexican hackers, who said they could break into ANY computer system, in ANY part of the world, at ANY time. Their attacks vary. Some hackers place their own messages. Some perform random acts of vandalism. Some send "flooding" programs or "phishing" programs that are meant to gather information or steal identification numbers, names, account numbers, social security numbers, and encrypted passwords. Some re-direct to pornographic web sites. Some simply make the target web sites go away. Several Episcopal church web sites -- including diocesan sites -- have been vandalized by hackers recently.

4. To some, computer hacking is a game. To others, it is a way of life. To some, it is a way to make a statement. To others, it is a way to inflict damage and chaos. But whatever the purpose, it always begins with an obsession or compulsion to BREAK INTO -- HACK INTO -- computer systems owned and operated by others. What used to be called "breaking and entering" is now referred to in the computer world as "hacking." It is also a federal crime. A serious crime. An expensive crime. Some estimates are that computer hacking is costing businesses around the world more than $100 billion a year. Even young children -- as young as 9 or 10 years old -- are often possessed with the urge to HACK their way into another person's computer system. It can often be done very quickly -- from a laptop computer with a high-speed satellite or cable broadband system. And the way to do it is easily accessible from web sites on the Internet that specialize in sharing computer secrets.

(1) Perhaps the most notorious hacker in recent memory is a young man known as "Captain Crunch." His real name is Adrian Lamo -- and he has befuddled computer security experts since 1976. He successfully broke into the most secure computer sites in the world -- repeatedly -- and once even on NBC nightly news. After his arrest, he went to work as a computer security expert.

(2) And then there was Kevin Mitnick, who broke into the Pentagon's computer system when he was only 17, back in 1983. That's also when he was arrested for the first time. Now he runs his own security company.

5. As someone who has been on-line on the Internet for 20 years, I have kept up with the spread of computer hacktivism. And as much as I hate to say it, there is a corresponding spiritual dimension to this problem. And that brings me to the main point I want to emphasize this morning, before we look at our Gospel lesson from John Chapter 14. And here is my main point:

6. The primary focus of our Gospel lesson, I believe, is on the necessity for us to follow the Lord's pathway -- the way of humble servanthood. Let us look at this wonderful passage from John 14:

(1) The setting for Jesus' words -- the Upper Room in Jerusalem on Thursday of Holy Week. Jesus spoke shortly after He rose from the table and washed the feet of His apostles, who had been arguing among themselves about which one of THEM was the greatest). Jesus taught them -- by showing them -- His commandment of humble servanthood. His direct commandment (mandatum) to them was that were to love others as a sign of their love and commitment to Him. "As I have loved you, so you must love one another. For it is by the love you have, one for another, that the world will know that you belong to me" (John 13:34).

(2) Having shown them His divine humility, He assures them of their place with Him, for eternity. "Let not your hearts be troubled," He said. "You believe in God; believe also in me." He tells them that, even though He goes away from them, He will be at work preparing a place for them in His Kingdom. "I go to prepare a place for you," He said.

(3) He promises to come for them. "As surely as I go, I will come for you, that where I am, there you may be also." These may be the most comforting words EVER spoken -- knowing that He will be present with us, even at the end.

(4) And He tells them HOW they are to prepare for His next coming. The focus of His words is that HE HIMSELF is the way they are to follow, the truth they are to obey, and the LIFE they are to emulate. "I am the way, the truth, and the life," Jesus said. "No one comes to the Father except by me." We get to Him, in other words, by going THROUGH Him. By living our lives as He did -- by serving others in love and humility.

7. It is astonishing how many "other" ways people seek in order to reach spiritual fulfillment. A few illustrations: (1) People try to BUY their way into spiritual fulfillment (into heaven) by accumulating "good things" in their lives; (2) People try to cheat their way in by giving only a small part of their lives to the Lord; (3) People try to charm their way in, by turning on their faith only a certain special moments; (4) People try to argue their way in, by debating obscure theological points, or proof-texting certain beliefs. NONE OF THESE SHORTCUTS WILL WORK, though. If we want to enter God's Kingdom, we must do what Jesus tells us to do: To live humble lives before Him, seeking and serving the "least" of His children -- the poor, the sick, the friendless, the needy. In the end, try as you might, you cannot "hack" your way into heaven. You also cannot buy your way in, cheat your way in, charm your way in, or argue your way in. The only way into heaven is by humbling ourselves before the Lord. It is, after all, the true Way of the Cross.