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Arise & Shine for your light has
come. May the mountains yield. For He delivers, saves lives from oppression and
violence. He redeems their life. We are servants according to the gift of God's
Grace. We were all given a purpose through Christ Jesus our Lord in whom we
have access to God in boldness and confidence through faith. Some wonderful
thoughts to begin this Epiphany Sunday. This is the Sunday where the light bulb
is supposed to go off in our hearts and minds in thinking once again of God with
us, but now affirmed by the coming of the three wise guys. In all truthfulness,
they’re probably somewhere in between 15 to 30 different travelers—Magi,
Soothsayers & kings maybe not necessarily from the Orient but from all
different places in the East. They came with gifts for this rising star in our
world, but it would be the child who then would become Jesus the Christ, who
would give us the greatest gift of all, His life.
A lot of the language in all the
lessons we have this Sunday are packed with wonderful meaning. This is the Festival
of Lights, the season of Lights, the theophany revelation of God made known through
a wisdom rising. My husband actually came up with the best image of thinking of
the heart turning to God as we hear in Isaiah verse 5: “… then you shall see
and be radiant, your heart shall thrill and rejoice.” The word Rejoice itself
means a heart turning, to be turning. He saw the image of the Grinch cartoon
classic where the Grinch's heart grew three sizes that day as he realized the
true meaning of Christmas and brought everything back for the little Who’s in
Whoville. And as the following lines say: “… his strength grew to the strength
of ten grinches” and they show him on the little mountain of snow lifting up
the entire sleigh full of the Whoville gifts.
This Sunday is actually considered
the 13th Sunday of Christmas; which is kind of funny because we don't associate
13 with being a good number for much of anything, but it is at the tail end of
the 12 days. These twelve days, we are to reflect the reality of remembering ‘The
Greatest Story Ever Told’ of the Incarnation, God incarnate in our world.
Outside of the classic hymns that came to mind and thinking about the “Three
Wise Guys” or the 15 to 30 Wise men, as they may have been, I started hearing of
all things, some of the lines of Paul McCartney's ‘Hope of Deliverance.’ One of
his lesser-known modern albums from the early 90s… but I like what the Holy
Spirit sent me to hear. I will always be hoping, hoping I will understand
someday, one day when it'll be right. I don't know but we live in Hope of
deliverance from the darkness that surrounds us. The song continues and repeats
quite often but it ends in a sense of saying how we need one another go along
with the plan when it'll be right. When it seems, it will be like this, is when
we live into hope.
St Paul our perfect pastor is
wonderfully encouraging the Ephesian Church in gently reminding them how they
were commissioned by God's grace. Paul himself was commissioned and currently
prisoner in Rome under house arrest. But that man was truly free in more ways
than one and we know that from all of his writings. Paul was somebody who
really did fully have a change in his heart. His eyes lifted up and Christ was
revealed to him as well as the mission of the world was put in place with the Gospel.
We are to be lights in the world as Christ is our True Light. The power of God
is something we still don't understand. We either are in fearful awe of it, or
we are in fear and only understanding it in terms of how we see power and
control; which when you think of that that's the sad reality of our frames of
mind.
For Saint Paul, what was around the
corner for his life wasn't too encouraging… but he wasn't going to let the
light of the Gospel go dim in what he had to share as his gift of wisdom to his
congregation. There is an interesting note to think about we see the days of our
lives, I'm sure, sometimes like pages in a book that turn and sometimes what's
around the corner we have some good trepidation about. We wonder if it's the
valley growing deeper and longer or if we're on that mountain top cliff and the
chasm is only a few hundred feet away.
In today's Gospel we hear the story
of King Herod. Herod was a fearful man, who was only concerned with worldly
things and power. Some of the things I read about him actually said that he was
very paranoid and even murdered a number of family members out of fear of
losing his power. His sense of power and light in the world were definitely a
part of the old world. When the wise men didn't return to Herod to give their
report on where the Messiah was born, Herod resorted to commit a most heinous
crime and that would be the killing of the Innocents. Some people think that it's
a myth and that it didn’t happen. Nobody's really for certain even ancient
historians such as Josephus couldn't find the origins of truthfulness to the story
of Herod's evil act to follow. Herod would never see the light of Christ and His
message, neither would the one that would be in the line that murdered the
Baptist as well. Neither man could handle the truth, the revelation of God.
Keeping that in the back of your
mind that is an interesting thought: what we can handle of God's revelation in
the world. What do we realize of God, here and now, in this new century, in a
world that is growing more secular as we speak? When God speaks, some of us
truly do listen! The dirty dozen of the disciples would listen to Jesus. They
all became great witnesses ordained with a great purpose in the world, the Gospel.
January is a wonderful first step into a brand-new year. Back in 2015, I chose
January for my own ordination, January 17th, 2015. For Pastor Mary,
hers was the beginning of Advent, December 1st, 2018. she found as
an important message to mark her calling from God and answering. Those
days in December and January for both Mary and I, we're truly about God's
lights rising in our hearts, that New Nature being revealed. I'm sure for many
of our friends in ministry, there are other days that are special for their
confirmation and commissioning from God. We all have moments that are
revelations in our lives of God's work in, with, and through us as well as
around us.
Perhaps we could think of those
moments of God speaking to us, those Revelations, are like God's GPS system. It
could either mean God’s Providence Shining or God’s Providing System.
Christmas in the world maybe ending, and we'll take down those Christmas trees
and put them away in boxes as well as perhaps put away or exchange gifts that
were given to us by family members and Friends, but the gift of Christ into the
world is the one that keeps on giving, just like that commercial. The love and
Providence of God through Christ Jesus coming into our world to save us in more
ways than one, is that gift that never runs out. It is that gift that bears an eternal
purpose for the renewal and regeneration of the world through a radiant flowing
stream of Grace.
When we were in our text study group
on Monday, we were thinking of or were reminded I should say of the Prophet
Amos. From the Psalms verbiage, I wonder if Amos read David’s Psalms? “In His
days may righteousness flourish and peace abound.” I also heard that echo of
Amos saying: “… when righteousness and peace shall kiss one another… God's
justice rolls like a stream.” The second half of that verse from the Psalm says:
“… until the Moon is no more.” Kind of a scary image there but it is that
prompting, that makes us think about God's timing and our timing. It makes us
think about what does flourishing mean? With the turning of yet another year
now the 19th year into the 21st century; what is really flourishing in your
life? Is peace abounding in the world, yet alone your heart?
We need to be hopeful now more than
ever. We need to be hopeful in that saving grace that continues to renew us
through our faith. But it's going to need us to take a good look around
and see what our world is really like, not just the little one revolving around
us, but what IS beyond the self that
we are called to become fellow heirs, members and sharers in the promise that
Christ Jesus gives us in His Gospel. The last few weeks have been
spiritually very challenging speaking for myself, because I have been doing
nothing but looking for work. Looking into ministries and continually having to
define and re-define my skill-set, my gifts and things that I have to share
with other people. Some days it's been downright discouraging, other days it
has left me to think and reflect. There's a certain wisdom in reviewing your
journey, what you've done through your life. What it means not only for
yourself but what it means to others. Has your life made a difference in the
world? Does it really even matter? This is the darkness, not the light that
says sentences like that but then we are living in times of transition.
The world keeps revolving, but not
necessarily evolving into the light of the Gospel that Christ Jesus became
incarnate for to deliver to us. We are in perpetual hope for deliverance out of
things that we are finding ourselves challenged by. It seems like our wisdom,
and what we've gained, is never enough. In one sense, that is true we will
always be growing and sometimes digressing… What we think is advancement at
times is just going further into the valley. Those are the painful parts of
being a person of faith especially when we hear ‘The Greatest Story Ever Told’
and we go through the Journey each year of remembering and hearing and
reflecting on Living Word of God. How it continues to restore us, depends on
our willingness to follow and obey.
Sometimes though it's like when we
use those GPS machines. I have an inherited TomTom from a friend of mine. I
still prefer my smartphone's GPS over that one. A lot of times I turn it off
and feel I know where I'm going until I'm completely lost on a side street that
I have no idea where to go from next. There's lots of little side streets on
the journey of our lives. With the roads where we don't see the little skull
and crossbones or the little arrow sign saying go here, this is the best route...
The “Three Wise Guys” or the 15 to 30 something soothsayers that came to see
the Christ child, lucked out they had a big floating star that landed right
over where the Christ child and his family we're staying.
Today we've got the internet and
we've got all kinds of gadgets to help us get places but do they really? What
do I mean by that? I am going back and forth it seems from abstraction to
reality. The wisdom we think we've advanced in, has not helped our hearts to
turn to God. Especially when we shy away from loving our neighbor but become
so-called knowledgeable judges over and against our neighbors. We know it
all. Some people are only going to build upon one kind of knowledge that
they're comfortable with, for King Herod, it was power and control. Power and
control are a big issue for us today still, some people only see that as their
goal.
St Paul saw power through the eyes
of the Gospel this power was being a servant according to the gift of God's
grace. Disciples are servant leaders in the world. Unlike the three Wise Guys
or wise Magi that visited the Infant Jesus, we visit the world with a gift of
our lives serving one another. That is our epiphany, it is as well, our cost of
discipleship.
Everywhere disciples of Christ find
their niche & realize where their journey is going to start taking them.
There are many nonprofits out there and various centers for the well-being of
others. The first one that I would hear of out here is a center that takes care
of and ministers specifically to victims of sex trafficking here in North Las
Vegas. Some of the individuals serving in this organization were former victims
themselves. It's hard to believe that that was once legal here in Las Vegas now.
I know I've heard it's only in Pahrump, I believe, as well as in a few other
places. We don't realize sometimes or enough what goes on in the Darkness in
the world around us that we are called to bring light to and truly help save
our neighbors.
That internal “God Providing System”
within us has to keep being at the helm of steering our spirits to realizing
and rejoicing in New Life just as the new life that came into the world as the
Christ child. The new life we are to treasure and reap and share is that New Nature.
We are those children of Grace and promise. We are those who have survived
dozens of King Herods in different forms or another. We are those who have
persevered with boldness and confidence into a graceless wilderness that many
times is truly not welcoming.
As I wrote recently for an essay in
regard to my view of America and our youth I said: "America is to be a
place where freedom is coupled with responsibility. We are to be a diverse
people who work together as a team building upon dreams of hope and being advocates
of restorative justice. We need to strive to be at the forefront of excellence;
on that same note we need to be practitioners of compassion." These are
idealistic words on one level, but they are, as well, words guided by a light.
These were my words on teaching and knowledge but as I continue to say: “Youth still
need to see and realize their own unique potential. We need to be a people that
encourages each other's gifts and shape not only our youth but those who need
to be more than encouraged to become innovators, outside of the box thinkers
and inventors. If we never dare to dream and build upon those dreams as Christ
Jesus indeed truly is our strength and our guide; how can we be the best we can
be?”
Let us Pray
Loving and Gracious Lord Jesus
Help us to see Your guiding
providing light shining in the darkness
Help us to again recall how you came
into our world
To save us in more ways than one.
Help us to manifest that light of
love and grace
As a wisdom of a New Nature begun to
be reaped.
We lift our eyes to your Grace &
Glory
May you rise always in our hearts
through this prayer
Amen
Feast
of the Epiphany; Sunday January 6th, 2019; Year C; SOLA Lectionary
Sermon
by: Reverend Nicole A.M. Collins
Psalm
72:1-15; Isaiah 60:1-6; Ephesians 3:1-12; Matthew 2:1-12
The link below is to this sermon's delivery at the Grace Hub at 12:30pm:
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