Faith and Prayer

Luke 9:37-43

How often do you pray?  How often do you spend time in the word, reading the words and lessons of Jesus?  How often throughout the day do you think about God?  If you are like me, when things are going good it is very easy to neglect these things.  It's very easy to wake up in the morning and start your day without a thought in the world of your faith, of your relationship with God.  It's easy to reach for the phone and read the latest facebook posts, play your lives in the latest game you're playing, check your emails and then realize you barely have time to take a shower and jump in the car to make it to work or school on time.  You get to your destination and you immediately jump into the busyness of the day and so the story goes.  Many times it's not until something stops us in our tracks that we remember to pray, that we remember to seek God (who by the way never leaves us, we shouldn't have to seek very far.)

Today our journey takes us to the beginning of a series of stories of the disciples messing up and Jesus continuing to teach them the lessons of life they need to know and embrace before he departs from them.  This story occurs right after they come down from the mountain.  A man with a sick child (demon possessed we are told) comes to Jesus and says I asked your disciples to do this but they couldn't.  Jesus becomes angry with the disciples and says: “You unbelieving and perverse generation,” Jesus replied,“how long shall I stay with you and put up with you? " (vs. 41 NIV)  If we read Matthew and Mark's version of this stories we learn that after Jesus healed the boy and is back in private with the disciples they ask him why they were unable to cast out the demon.  Jesus tells them because they didn't believe they could and because they didn't pray.  

We can not do this thing called life on our own.  We particularly can't follow Christ and do the things disciples of Christ should be about the business of doing without faith and without prayer.  During this Lenten Season make a point to start a habit of prayer and a habit of seeking God.  Next time you wake up and reach for your phone first thing to check facebook, play a game or check email how about checking in with God first.  As my Uncle Dwight used to say when teaching my 8th grade Sunday school class:  "When I point to you, I have four fingers pointing back to myself."  

Luke 9:28-36

Today our Journey takes us to a place where Jesus is praying with Peter James and John.  Peter, James and John had fallen asleep, as they often do when they are praying.  While they were sleeping an unbelievable thing occurs.  Jesus' appearance changes.  The story depicts him being radiated by bright light and suddenly Moses and Elijah, forefathers of the faith who have been long departed from this earth, appear with him.  It's as if they are having a heavenly meeting of the minds as they talked about "his departure" soon to be fulfilled.  Peter, James and John awaken to see this sight.  Can you imagine.  They must have thought they were still asleep and dreaming.  I can imagine them rubbing the sleep from their eyes, pinching themselves to see if they were awake, or even alive.  It was in this moment that they fully understood and knew who Jesus was.  There was no doubt.  A cloud covered them and they were afraid and a voice came from the cloud:  "This is my son, listen to him."  Then Moses and Elijah were gone as quickly as they came.  This portion of the story ends with Peter, James and John not telling anyone about this "at this time."

What it must have been like to meet God in such an intimate and personal way.  I'm reminded of Moses' encounter with God in the burning bush.  There are moments we too are standing on Holy Ground.  For me there are two times in life that I know without a doubt I am standing on Holy ground.  One is when I have witnessed the birth of a child.  The other is when I have sat by the bedside of a dying person.  Those are moments when any doubts I might have about the existence of the divine are completely washed away and I am in Awe.  "I Stand Amazed in the Presence."

I'm also reminded of my own "words from God" when I read this story.  A direct, clear, voice of God message has only happened once in my lifetime.  Once is enough.  I shall never forget it and it will always be a part of my story.  It was when I woke up in the middle of the night with the words Revelation 2:3 in my mind.  It was quite bizarre as I had not recently read revelation, I had never committed that verse to memory.  Why am I waking up in the middle of the night with that reference on my mind.  Here is what it said:  "Wake up!  Strengthen what remains and is about to die for I have found your deeds unfinished in the sight of my God."  (NIV) This night began my journey back to answering the call into ministry that I had first answered at the age of 13.  There have been many other ways that I have encountered God in my life.  I encounter God in scripture, in song, in other people but this was the most direct encounter I have had and it was awesome, scary, and amazing.

What about you.  In what ways have you encountered God in your life?  In what ways has God revealed God's self to you.  When do you feel as though you are standing on Holy Ground?

Carrying our Cross

Luke 9:18-27

As we continue walking with Jesus on his journey to Jerusalem we encounter his revelation to the disciples of who he is.  He is with the disciples praying with them in private and asks them who they think he is.  Peter says You are God's Messiah.  He tells them not to yet tell this to anyone.  It is at this time that Jesus reveals to them that he must die.  He then goes on to tell them what this means for them as followers and students of his.  This text can seem to be a riddle, mysterious and hard to decypher.

23 Then he said to them all: “Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross daily and follow me. 24 For whoever wants to save their life will lose it, but whoever loses their life for me will save it.25 What good is it for someone to gain the whole world, and yet lose or forfeit their very self? 26 Whoever is ashamed of me and my words, the Son of Man will be ashamed of themwhen he comes in his glory and in the glory of the Father and of the holy angels.
27 “Truly I tell you, some who are standing here will not taste death before they see the kingdom of God.”  

What does all that mean?  What does it mean to take up your cross.  What does it mean to save your life by losing it?  To save your life by losing it can actually be seen as an interpretation or further explanation of what is meant by "take up your cross."  In the first century the cross represented death.  Think of it as the electric chair or the needle.  When I think of being required to carry a cross to your own execution it reminds me of a parent having a child go get the belt for their "spanking."  It is a walk of shame, of dread, of fear.  This was what the cross represented for those hearing Jesus's words in the first century.  To carry a cross meant to die.  So how do we die to self?  We must remember that Jesus came to establish a new kind of Kingdom.  The type of King the world expected was a military conqueror.  Jesus was the opposite.  He came teaching a different kind of ruling.  He came teaching love for all.  He came teaching peace.  He came teaching love not only for friends but for enemies as well.  To carry ones cross is to die to the old ways of ruling and to take on the characteristics of Christ.  We must remember this daily.  It what ways do we still seek the old ways of ruling the old definition of Kingdom.  We are reminded here in verse 27 that we don't have to die to experience the Kingdom of God.  As Jesus says in the model prayers "thy kingdom come.......on EARTH as it is in heaven."  

There is yet another mystery in this passage.  In the midst of talking about losing yourself, dying to self, Jesus says "what good is it for someone to gain the whole wold, and let lose or forfeit their very self?"  That seems a contradiction to the rest of the passage.  Perhaps what needs to die is all the pretensions we put forth in order to fit into this world.  I recall sitting outside one day about 21 years ago in the pits of depression coming to this very revelation.  I was living the way others expected me to live.  I was "religious."  I was "following all the rules."  but I was not fully being who God created me to be.   I was living into others' expectations of what it meant for me to be a Christian, to follow Christ."  I was denying who God created me to be and in the process I was slowly and literally dying.  I weighed 105 pounds, you could see every rib in my body, I couldn't eat and my therapist had told me she was going to see me in a hospital bed soon.  That day, sitting out in the son I committed to be me.  If not I would literally die.  It was time for me to live into God's expectations of me and no one else's.  With all this in mind I would suggest that the cross represents putting to death all other expectations of you except the expectations of God.  Live into who God created you to be!  Follow the lessons of Christ, not the lessons of the world.  In doing so you might just get a glimpse of Heaven without even tasting death.

Welcoming the Interruptions

When the apostles returned, they reported to Jesus what they had done. Then he took them with him and they withdrew by themselves to a town called Bethsaida, 11 but the crowds learned about it and followed him. He welcomed them and spoke to them about the kingdom of God, and healed those who needed healing.  Luke 9:10-11

The disciples have just returned from their first solo mission.  They must be full of excitement and anxious to see Jesus and tell him of all they have encountered.  As I read this I am reminded of times in my career when I have had an exciting day at work.  Perhaps I had a major breakthrough with a family I'm working with.  Perhaps I've come across something very disturbing that I didn't quite know how to handle.  I immediately would want my supervisor's attention.  I yearned to tell my stories.  This must have been how the disciples felt.  Jesus recognizes their need and takes them off by themselves to retreat and debrief.  They were interrupted however.  The crowds learned where they were and demanded attention.  In that situation I would want my boss to protect our time together, to tell the crowds they must wait their turn.  I would be angry about the interruption.  I would be angry with the crowd.  I would be angry with my boss.  What did Jesus do?  He WELCOMED them!  He Spoke to them about the kingdom of God.  He healed those who needed healing.  Who is your life today?  Who needs to hear the good news of the kingdom?  Who needs to hear some words of healing?  We are on a journey to Jerusalem with our Savior.  Let's follow his example.  Let's welcome interruptions into our daily lives.  Let's share the good news.  Let's be the healing hands and feet of Jesus. 

What Should I Do?

^{What Should I Do?}

^{Luke 12-13-21}

^{Biblical Text}

 

¹³ Someone in the crowd said to him, “Teacher, tell my brother to divide the family inheritance with me.” ¹⁴ But

He said to him, “Friend, who set me to be a judge or arbitrator over you?” ¹⁵ And he said to them, “Take care! Be on your guard against all kinds of greed; for one’s life does not consist in the abundance of possessions.” ¹⁶ Then he told them a parable: “The land of a rich man produced abundantly. ¹⁷ And he thought to himself, ‘What should I do, for I have no place to store my crops?’ ¹⁸ Then he said, ‘I will do this: I will pull down my barns and build larger ones, and there I will store all my grain and my goods. ¹⁹ And I will say to my soul, Soul, you have ample goods laid up for many years; relax, eat, drink, be merry.’ ²⁰ But God said to him, ‘You fool! This very night your life is being demanded of you. And the things you have prepared, whose will they be?’ ²¹ So it is with those who store up treasures for themselves but are not rich toward God.”  (NRSV accessed through www.biblegateway.com)

 

            When I first read the text listed in the lectionary for this morning, I became afraid.  Money, wealth, riches……really?  I can’t go into a church as a guest pastor and talk to the people about money.  I’ll never be asked back again.  Finances are a very personal thing.  It’s one of those things along with religion, politics and a person’s age or weight that you are not supposed to ask others about.  It is uncomfortable.  Yet, the bible devotes 250+ verses to the subject of money.  Add to that scripture about possessions in general and there is no telling how many verses take up the issue of money/finances.  Holy Scripture tells us that the topic of finance and possessions is important.  My temptation to run away from the text told me that is precisely why I needed to wrestle with the text. 

            Our text today begins with an interruption.  The text is set in the time period we often refer to as the Journey to Jerusalem or to the Cross.  Jesus is in the final days of his earthly ministry and he takes every opportunity he can to teach his disciples what they need to know prior to his being with them no longer.  Also, during this time the Pharisees are in hot pursuit of Jesus, trying everything in their power to trip him up, to find things wrong with his ministry.  Our text picks up today following Jesus being invited to dine in the home of a Pharisee.  This dinner provided an intimate setting in which the Pharisees could further interrogate Jesus.  The subject at this dinner had been about hand-washing and Jesus not following the rituals of hand washing before dining.  Jesus uses the question as a teachable moment and tells them that they can wash their dishes on the outside as much as they like but it is what is on the inside that matters. He tells them that feeding the poor what is on the inside of the dish is what matters. I believe he was talking both literally and figuratively.  He is not only talking about the dishes with food in them but also about their own bodies.  Washing hands doesn’t clean the inside.  Our spirits, who we are, is what needs to be kept clean and we need to share that with the poor.

            While Jesus is dining a crowd gathers.  A very large crowd.  Jesus goes out to address them but before he addresses the crowd, he gathers his disciples around him and teaches them.  This is where our text interrupts.  It is interrupted by a man in the crowd who hollers out to Jesus.  Jesus, make my brother give me my part of my inheritance.  The man has been treated unjustly and in his mind this injustice done to him by his older brother is worthy of Jesus’ attention.   Jesus responds differently, however, he responds by asking “Who made me the arbitrator and judge between you and your brother?”  This is puzzling.as we know that we are supposed to bring all of our cares and concerns before God.  Isn’t God the ultimate judge and arbitrator?  I wonder if Jesus wasn’t saying.  This is not important; you have all that you need, why get into conflict over this inheritance.  We all know or have heard of families who have almost irreconcilable differences over inheritances or other forms of financial disputes. Perhaps by refusing to assist in this matter Jesus is saying there are much bigger things to be concerned with.

            Jesus uses this interruption as another teachable moment for the disciples.  He starts out by telling them to Watch Out!   Be on high alert against all kinds of greed.  “What do you mean greed?”  Wasn’t this inheritance due this man, how do you call that greed?  That is a question that comes to mind.  However, scripture teaches us over and over and over again that greed is having more than we need while others go without.  Greed keeps us from trusting God for our daily provisions.  Notice in the Lord’s Prayer Jesus teaches; give us this day our daily bread, what we need for today.  God provided only a day’s worth of manna to the Israelites when they were in the desert.  If they tried to collect more, it spoiled.  We need to trust God to provide what we need.  We don’t need more.  So, Jesus tells the Disciples Watch Out!  Be on your guard against all kinds of greed.  Why?  Because one’s life does not consist in the abundance of his possessions.”

            Stuff, we all think we need more stuff.  When I graduated from college my first home was a one room apartment over the nursing home my then husband worked in as the third shift supervisor.  We had a tiny closet, a bedroom, and a bathroom.  We had to eat the food prepared in the nursing home kitchen or go out to eat.  Given we were just out of college we couldn’t afford to eat out very much so we ate a lot of nursing home food.  We couldn’t wait to move onto seminary where we would have a one bedroom apartment with a living room, a dining area to eat in and a kitchen to cook our meal in.  If I just had a place with a kitchen, that is all I need but I need that kitchen.  Well guess what?  It didn’t take long until I was saying: “This is nice but I sure wish we had one extra room where I could be alone to study or where we could have overnight guest.”  My next home was a trailer that I bought after my divorce.  It was a three bedroom, 2 bath trailer and it was mine.  Surely this is all I could ever need or want……..But guess what?  I adopted my son and he quickly filled up two bedrooms of the home.  I just want a house, if only I could have a house on property that I own, surely that is all I could ever want or need.  Yes, it keeps going.  I now live in a 3 bedroom house and it is full of “stuff.  There is more I think I need.  We’re driven to work for more money to pay for more stuff.  Right now my home has 4 televisions, 4 laptops, an ipad, and 3 data capable telephones in it.  That doesn’t mention all the other stuff. In his book Abundant Community, John McKnight talks about the United States as going from a society of citizens to a society of consumers.  He states that “THE ESSENTIAL PROMISE of a consumer society is that satisfaction can be purchased. This promise runs so deep in us that we have come to take our identity from our capacity to purchase.” (McKnight and Block 2010)  Jesus here warns the disciples that is absolutely not who you want to be, that is not your identity. 

            To drive this point home Jesus tells the Disciples a story.  He tells the disciples about a man who had come into unexpected wealth in the form of his crop.  His crop yielded so much that the barns he already had for storing crops were full.  He didn’t know what to do.  He asked himself “What am I to do.”  Then he says to himself:  “I know I will tear down my existing barns and make bigger barns, and then I can retire and never have to work again.  I can eat, drink and be merry for the rest of my days. 

            Well okay, so what?  The man worked hard, his hard work paid off and now he can enjoy life.  Isn’t that what we all aim for?  We work toward retirement, we have our 401 Ks and our pension plans so that when we get old we don’t have to worry about it.  We can retire before we are too old to enjoy retirement.  What is wrong with that?  Listen to the rest of the Parable.  God addresses the man.  “You fool. this very night your life is going to be taken from you, then who is going to get what you have prepared for yourself.” (NIV)

            Aren’t we supposed to prepare for retirement?  Aren’t we supposed to make sure our loved ones are provided for when we leave this earth? Aren’t we taught that saving is an essential part of financial responsibility?  Looking at other scripture lessons I believe that we will find evidence that it is prudent to save.  In the times of Joseph leading in Egypt there was a famine predicted to come across the land.  Joseph instructed the Egyptians to build extra storehouses and to store enough grain for 7 years.  His preparedness ended up saving his family.  When Israel was wandering in the desert the Lord instructed them on the day before the Sabbath to gather enough manna for two days as there would be no gathering of manna on the Sabbath.  The instructions in Leviticus and Deuteronomy regarding land and harvest instructs a period of time when land is given a year’s rest.  Extra crops are to be put up to last through the winter.

            Jesus is not suggesting we be irresponsible.  He is suggesting that we not be greedy.  That we not continue to obtain and store up possessions and wealth that we do not need when there are so many among us in need.  He is suggesting that we do not let our identity be defined by our possessions.  No, our identity should be defined by our richness toward God. 

            What does it mean to be rich toward God?  It means to follow the way of Jesus Christ.  We heard read in Colossians 3 this morning what is not being rich toward God and in that list was included Greed.  Paul states that Greed is idolatry.  If we read beyond verse 11 into vs. 12-17 we read what Paul says is being rich in God.  “It is As God’s chosen ones, holy and beloved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, meekness, and patience. ¹³ Bear with one another and, if anyone has a complaint against another, forgive each other; just as the Lord^] has forgiven you, so you also must forgive. ¹⁴ Above all, clothe yourselves with love, which binds everything together in perfect harmony. ¹⁵ And let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, to which indeed you were called in the one body. And be thankful. ¹⁶ Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly; teach and admonish one another in all wisdom; and with gratitude in your hearts sing psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs to God. ¹⁷ And whatever you do, in word or deed, do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him.

 

            In his book From Brokenness to Community, Jean Vanier writes, “Those with whom -Jesus identifies himself are regarded by society as misfits. And yet -Jesus is that person who is hungry; -Jesus is that woman who is confused and naked. Wouldn’t it be extraordinary if we all discovered that? The face of the world would be changed. We would then no longer want to compete in going up the ladder to meet God in the light, in the sun and in beauty, to be honored because of our theological knowledge. Or if we did want knowledge, it would be because we believe that our knowledge and theology are important only so long as they are used to serve and honor the poor.(accessed August 2, 2013 @www.commonprayer.net)

 

The question the Farmer in the parable asks himself is what should I do?  I challenge you today to ask what you should do in response to this parable.  In what ways can you be on guard against greed?    What kind of changes do you need to make to simplify your life and live rich in God, clothed with compassion, seeing Jesus in the hungry and the naked; in the mentally ill and the sick, in the orphan and the widowed? What can you do to be Jesus to those you come in contact with?  What can you do to bring Kingdom to earth as it is in heaven?

Bibliography:

 

McKnight, John, and Peter Block. Abundant Community: Awakening the Power of Families and Neighborhoods. Berrett-Koehler Publishers-Kindle Edition, 2010.

www.commonprayer.net accessed August 2^nd, 2013.

 

www.biblegateway.com accessed August 2, 2013

A Child has Died.......Why?

Yesterday in the Mountaineer Newspaper the reader was introduced to local author, Ann Davis Melton.  The Headline read “Author shares miracles in her walk with God.”[1]  The book is described as “a first-hand account of the power of prayer and the successes that can come from closely waking with the Lord.”   Ms. Melton will be signing her book at Blue Ridge Books and News on Saturday and Sunday of this week and I plan to get my copy.  However, I also plan to ask the author if she plans a follow up book on where God was in the times of her life that weren’t successful, during the “wilderness” times of her life.  You see the same day this article came out a 6 y/o little girl, Emilee Russell, took her last breath in a hospital far from her home after suffering complications from Rocky Mountain Spotted Fever.  Her parents and friends walk closely with God and prayer chains all over the country were lifting this little girl to God.  They prayed for the same miracle given to the Woman of Nain in Luke chapter 7 when as her only son was being carried out dead in a coffin Jesus commanded “Young man, I say to you get up!”  and he did.  Yet, still yesterday she took her last breath. 

The Newspaper article could give the wrong impression that as long as you walk closely with God, bad things will not happen.   I do believe that miracles still happen.  Little Emilee Russell and her family experienced such a miracle when she and her twin brother were born at 24 weeks and survived.  One is left to wonder why her life was spared then to only be taken now.  I’m certain that the Russell’s and their friends ask the same questions I asked when my nephew, Jax, was born at 20 weeks, took one breath and died in my brother’s waiting arms.  I’m certain they have the same question my best friend and her siblings had when their faithful, God fearing mother was robbed from them by the horrible disease we know of cancer at the age of 43.  Why?  Why did I not deserve a miracle and someone else did. I wonder if King David wondered this when his infant child died in the book of Samuel.  I wonder if the mother in the Isaiah story of the infant who lived but just a few days had the same question.

 It’s during these times that I remember that the Bible is full of both stories of heartbreak and stories of great joy.  There are no answers in it as to why some people receive these miracles and why others don’t.  Life brings tragedy.  God didn’t rob the Russells of their little precious daughter, Rocky Mountain spotted fever did.  God didn’t rob my brother of his precious son, underdeveloped lungs did.  God didn’t rob my best friend of her mother, cancer did.

 I am reminded of an email I received just a few short weeks ago from the Worship Leader at my former church letting me know that her husband had been diagnosed with terminal cancer.  Her husband had seen miracles in his life.  He had “cheated” death twice already following a near fatal accident and a heart attack.  In the email she wrote “we recognize that everyone has an appointment with death.”  Donnie died a week later, cancer, not God, robbing his family of more time with him. 

Where is the good News in any of this?  The Good News is that the Jesus, who wept when his friend Lazarus died, weeps with us in our times of heartache and sorrow.  The Good news is that the same God that was present at his own son’s untimely death is present with us during the untimely tragedies of our own lives and he has experienced the same heartache and sorrow that we feel.  The God News is that Jesus came and brought the message of love to a world that desperately needed it and put that love in the hearts of people so that in these times humanity can surround those who are victims of tragedy with the Love that indwells within them through Jesus Christ.  The Good News is we have all read the end of the story and know that death is not the end for us but only the beginning of New Life.  The Good News is that in the end Jesus has victory over death.  We see that through the witness of the resurrection.

  So, what can we do in times like this but surround a family with that love?  Just as the towns people surrounded Mary and Martha at the death of their brother Lazarus.  We weep with them, we provide for them, we love them with the powerful love of Jesus.  We carry them just as the crippled man’s friends carried him to Jesus.  There will be a miracle.  The miracle will be that The Russell’s will survive this tragedy.  They will look on the other side of this war torn bridge their crossing and say I don’t know how I did it, but I did.  They will make it to the other side through the prayers, support and love of their friends and family and through the peace that passes all understanding.  I hope Ms. Melton will write stories like these as well. 

 

 

---

[1] (Hyatt 2013)

The King Has Come

Sermon for Longs United Methodist Church-January 6th, 2013....Epiphany!

 

 

I had a dream Friday night which resulted in my waking up my entire household belting out the chorus to the song “The King is Coming.”  I was awoken from my dream by some amused, irritated and confused people.  I had dreamed that I was on a college campus that ended up looking much like Disney world.  In the distance a friend and I noticed that there were stars bursting and exploding in the sky. Being that they were very similar to Disney world fireworks we decided not to become too alarmed but still chose to move away from the area to where we could not see these exploding stars.  We rounded the corner of a tall building into what appeared to be some kind of courtyard, people milling around, and going about their business.  Suddenly stars behind us started exploding everywhere with the sound of what downtown Baghdad must sound like at times.  “The end of the World is here” exclaimed my friend as we both broke out into a run and I began to sing the old southern gospel Song the King is Coming.  I awoke from the dream puzzled by its cause.  I realized I had gone to bad right after researching for this sermon.  The texts and the research had much to say about the coming of a King.  Then, I was reminded of my childhood memories growing up in a faith tradition that was all about looking for the second coming of Jesus.  The visions that were handed down of this were very scary much like my dream.  Planes crashing, start exploding, trumpets blaring, cars wrecking, houses disappearing underground, people flying through the sky.  It was not something one really looked forward to, at least I didn’t.  There were a few times in my child hood that Nostradamus had predicted the end of the world much like the latest prediction when the Mayan Calendar ended.  There has been a shift in the scary story now from crashing planes to Zombies.  None the less the images can be scary.  My logic as a young girl during those times was just to sing the King is coming over and over again because the Bible did say that he would come like a thief in the night when no one was expecting.  Therefore if I was singing about it; it wouldn’t happen.  So, reading about the coming of a king coupled with not so suppressed child hood memories made the perfect recipe for an apocalyptic dream that ended with a resounding shout of the “The King is Coming.” 

 

The good news from today’s passages of scripture is the King has already come.  He wasn’t accompanied by crashing planes, Zombies and exploding stars though.  He was born quietly in an outdoor building to a young teenage girl and a carpenter.  He came quietly as an innocent, vulnerable infant.  Not much a picture of a King you might think.  Yet that is what we celebrate today, on Epiphany Sunday!  We celebrate the birth of a King and the revelation of who that King is and what kind of King He would be.  A revelation of who we are as Christ Followers. 

 

Epiphany!  What does that mean?  Why do we celebrate it?  Many of you know that typically as I’m writing a sermon I will put a Facebook prompt out on the world wide web and I have fun reading the responses and incorporating them into my sermon.  This was my Facebook prompt this week.  Epiphany, what is it.  Have you had one, if so tell me about it.  I usually get a pretty decent response out of those postings but I only got three responses to this one and the third one I solicited in person.  I wondered why?  I think possibly it was because no one could really answer it.  For us, epiphany can be somewhat of a mystery or at least very difficult to explain.  Growing up in a different tradition I was an adult before I had ever paid any attention to the word.  So just what does it mean?  One friend suggested it meant a moment when I have a feeling of tremendous clarity of thought. I feel it when everything clicks. It is an "A-HA, it makes sense now" moment! “A Revelation Perhaps.”  Another friend didn’t share what he thought it was but said that he has had an epiphany with the birth of each of his children and that Epiphany’s are accompanied by a paradigm shift.  The Third friend said for her it was like when you try over and over again to get a key to unlock the door and finally everything lines up just right and the lock comes unlocked.  She states she has had many of them and they are definitely inspired and from the Divine but outside of that you can’t explain them to someone else and for them get it.  Different dictionaries give different meanings but all of them agree on a couple of things.  First Epiphany is a festival celebration when the church celebrates the manifestation of God in Christ to the gentiles represented by the Magi.  Secondly that it can be a revelation brought by a deity.  The Early church began celebrating Epiphany around 361 A.D.  The  Greek  epiphaneia derives from the verb "to appear" and means "appearance," "manifestation." In classical Greek it was used of the appearance of dawn, of an enemy in war, but especially of a manifestation of a deity to a worshipper (a theophany).   So to Sum it up:  Epiphany is a day to celebrate God incarnate in Jesus Christ to the entire World.  It is a day to celebrate those moments in our lives when we have revelations of Christ in our lives, when we have been spoken to by God.  The focal passages today give us both an ancient look of epiphany and a Gospel look at Epiphany So let’s take a look. 

 

Our old Testament story takes place after The Kingdom of Judah was captured by the Babylonians and many Jews were taken captive and exiled to Babylon.  In today’s Old Testament passage the prophet Isaiah is giving the Jewish people a word from God.  He brings them a word of hope.  It’s important to note that in the two previous chapters Isaiah has raked the Jews over the coals for their transgressions.  They had turned their backs on God, they had spoken evil things they had not sought true Justice.  They are in the dark both physically and spiritually.  That is their condition.  They sit in the midst of ruins but even in the midst of the ruins God sends a message of hope.  Let’s look at it again. 

 

Arise, shine, for your light has come,
and the glory of the Lord rises upon you.
² See, darkness covers the earth
and thick darkness is over the peoples,
but the Lord rises upon you
and his glory appears over you.
³ Nations will come to your light,
and kings to the brightness of your dawn.

⁴ “Lift up your eyes and look about you:
All assemble and come to you;
your sons come from afar,
and your daughters are carried on the hip.
⁵ Then you will look and be radiant,
your heart will throb and swell with joy;
the wealth on the seas will be brought to you,
to you the riches of the nations will come.
⁶ Herds of camels will cover your land,
young camels of Midian and Ephah.
And all from Sheba will come,
bearing gold and incense
and proclaiming the praise of the Lord.

There are a couple of things to take hold of here.  First and foremost is the very first verse which comes in the form of a command:  Arise, Shine!  God through Isaiah commands the people to rise out of the ruins and out of the darkness and shine.  What are they to shine?  They are to shine the light that they have received.  That light being the very presence and care of their almighty and awesome God.  How do they shine their light?  Well let’s look back at chapter 58; vs. 6-9.  They read:

 

Is not this the kind of fasting I have chosen:
to loose the chains of injustice
and untie the cords of the yoke,
to set the oppressed free
and break every yoke?
⁷ Is it not to share your food with the hungry
and to provide the poor wanderer with shelter—
when you see the naked, to clothe them,
and not to turn away from your own flesh and blood?
⁸ Then your light will break forth like the dawn,
and your healing will quickly appear;
then your righteousness^[a] will go before you,
and the glory of the Lord will be your rear guard.
⁹ Then you will call, and the Lord will answer;
you will cry for help, and he will say: Here am I.

 

God says this is the way to shine your light:  Take care of the oppressed, the underdog, the different.  That is when your light will break forth.  You see we are a light, lighting the way for others to see and reach Jesus, Emmanuel, God with us.  We are the way for others to experience Epiphany. 

 

The second thing that is noteworthy here is the mention of other nations coming to the light.  Up to this point God has been viewed as the God of the Jews.  Other nations pay homage to other gods, Yahweh is for the Jews.  But here in this chapter 60 Isaiah says the other nations will come to the light.  The Jews will be a light that draws everyone in for God desires relationship with all of humanity; not just a select few.  ALL! 

 

This notion takes us to the Gospel passage of Epiphany for Today. It is the story of the visit of the Magi to baby Jesus.  A few questions arose for me out of this passage.  What are Magi?  Where did they come from?  How did they know to follow the star?  How did they know what the star would lead them to?  Just what is frankincense and myrrh?  Magi were a class of people who were known as astronomers and astrologists.  They were very well versed in science and math and were considered to be so wise that in their area of the world (the east) only persons who had been Magi could become kings and the magi were who crowned the Kings.  The Magi were not of Jewish heritage; they were Gentiles.  This is very important for here we see again that God is for all.  No longer will there be Jew or Greek.  God is the God of all.  It is these Gentiles that first come to worship Jesus.  How did they know?  It is believed that they were knowledgeable of Jewish scripture.  It is also part of the belief of astrologists that when a baby was born a star for that baby would appear.  Some scholars suggest that the star was not actually a star but was a brilliant light that could only be seen by those truly seeking it.  Such was the light of God’s glory in many other parts of both the Old and New Testament.  There was light that guided the Jews in the wilderness.  Moses’ face radiated with God’s glory when he came down from the mountain.  There are numerous other examples.  So, it is thought that the Magi knew of prophecy and thus when the light they were searching for appeared they set out on a journey to go find the “king of the Jews” that had been born and to honor and worship him.  They find Jesus and they bare gifts and they worship him.  We get a picture here of worship being a true homage to Jesus through kneeling before him and bestowing gifts upon him.  These were some of the same gifts that Queen Sheba had brought to King Solomon when she visited.  Gold, Frankincense and Myrrh were common gifts brought to Kings upon visiting them.  Thus the Magi brought common gifts for paying homage to a King.  Frankincense and Myrrh were used both as infusions into oil to create anointing oil and also was burned as incense during times of sacrifice in order to rid the temple of the odors from the sacrifices.  Frankincense and Myrrh were thus both part of the normal homage for any king and were essential elements used in worshipping Yahweh, the God of the Jews.  We must keep this all in mind as Christians.  We must keep in mind that it was Gentiles that came and worshipped Jesus.  No one has a monopoly on God.  God’s grace is for anyone who will seek to find it such as the Magi.  There are no walls barring anyone from entering into relationship with God.  The Apostle Paul’s very mission was to take the message of the Mystery of God to the Gentiles, the outsiders.  He writes in Ephesians 3:1-12:

 

For this reason I, Paul, the prisoner of Christ Jesus for the sake of you Gentiles—

² Surely you have heard about the administration of God’s grace that was given to me for you, ³ that is, the mystery made known to me by revelation, as I have already written briefly. ⁴ In reading this, then, you will be able to understand my insight into the mystery of Christ, ⁵ which was not made known to people in other generations as it has now been revealed by the Spirit to God’s holy apostles and prophets. ⁶ This mystery is that through the gospel the Gentiles are heirs together with Israel, members together of one body, and sharers together in the promise in Christ Jesus.

⁷ I became a servant of this gospel by the gift of God’s grace given me through the working of his power. ⁸ Although I am less than the least of all the Lord’s people, this grace was given me: to preach to the Gentiles the boundless riches of Christ, ⁹ and to make plain to everyone the administration of this mystery, which for ages past was kept hidden in God, who created all things. ¹⁰ His intent was that now, through the church, the manifold wisdom of God should be made known to the rulers and authorities in the heavenly realms, ¹¹ according to his eternal purpose that he accomplished in Christ Jesus our Lord. ¹² In him and through faith in him we may approach God with freedom and confidence.

 

The last thing we should note in the Gospel passage is that because Herod was seeking Jesus to kill him, the Magi took a different route home in order to avoid the Herod and his men.  Gregory the Great once said “Having come to know Jesus we are forbidden to return by the way we came.  Knowing Jesus changes us, changes our path.  That is epiphany.  It is meeting Jesus and letting Jesus change our path.  It is being open to the light, to the still small voice.  It is those moments of clarity when something about God becomes new and real like it never has before.   

 

One writer summed up the common themes of these passages this way:

 

He stated “The common theme is the manifestation of God to People outside of the Religious Community.  We are to be a light to the nations.  The ultimate purpose of God is the unification of humanity in a truly multicultural community where all distinctions between insiders and outsiders have vanished.  Those distinctions erode with the coming of Christ who was revealed to some who were thought to be on the outside and paradoxically rejected by many who were thought to be on the inside. 

 

So as we start a new year here at Longs United Methodist I want you to ponder these questions both for yourselves and individuals and for us as a church community:   The star guides the Magi to Jesus.  What stars have or are still guiding you to Jesus?  Who are the lights in this dark world?  Who is Looking at you or me or this church to be their star, their guide to Jesus? 

 

As we celebrate Epiphany this day let’s do so with a commitment that these doors will be wide open.  Let’s do so with a commitment to be a light to the Bethel community.  Let’s do so with the full knowledge that God graciously, mysteriously and sometimes defiantly breaks into human lives:  May we do the same. 

 

Thanks be to God!