STM: Home By Another Way
Epiphany
Home by Another Way
What did you think about this morning when you got up and your feet hit the floor? The routine of the day, I suppose? Work to do, places to go, calls to make? All a part of our routine, our pattern.
Sometimes the way is quite clear for us, where we feel confident and assured about where we're headed and the future seems clear and the present seems manageable. But sometimes, whether by our own choices or by things outside of our control, things don't seem so manageable, the future doesn't see clear, the path doesn't seem so straight and level. And frankly, some mornings are worse. When our feet hit the floor, we step into that deep rut that takes us past the same tired scenery and the same vagueness about what we're about. Every morning when we arise, we begin making choices, even out of our routine, where we will go, what motivates and sustains us. Each day we begin our journey making some choices about where we are headed, who we will follow.
It is the assurance for believers, the followers of Christ, us every morning when our feet hit the floor, is that we are on our way home. We are moving constantly with the Spirit toward fulfillment and the accomplishment of God's purposes. It is a path to which we have been drawn and invited, where the way is made ready for us. It is path and purpose
It easy to forget that. It easy to forget that the one has come who prepares our way. Because all these other things that we carefully plan or we cannot control, can turn us and direct us from the path of hopefulness and purpose and fellowship with Christ. I don't mean to be critical. It is not always clear to us . . . the way. That's why I love the notion of epiphany. Epiphany means revelation and our symbol for epiphany is light. . . a light is cast in darkness and people see and what is God's purpose is revealed. The path is illuminated. We are Epiphany people, you and me, on whom this light has shone and for whom the way has been made clear.
But like I said, it's sometimes quite hard to maintain that perspective. We end up speaking in one language, hearing in another. Messages, purpose can get confused. Michael Deaver, an aide to former President Reagan tells this story. He said, "A man and wife were getting ready for bed one evening and the wife said she felt like having some ice cream. "OK", said her husband, "I'll go get it." She said, "I want vanilla with chocolate sauce" And he said. "OK, vanilla with chocolate sauce" And she said, "Don't forget the cherry on top" He said, "Right, cherry on top" "And," she said, "I want whipped cream." "Right, that's vanilla with chocolate sauce, cherry on top with whipped cream." She said, "Do you want to write it down?" "Nope, that's not necessary."
So the man goes downstairs, and in a few minutes comes back upstairs where his wife had already gotten into bed. And he handed her a bag. She opened and pulled out a ham sandwich. "I told you you should have written down," she said angrily. "You forgot the mustard."
We seem to be caught sometimes in different conversations, hearing different directions from our vocations and our families and the world and our faith . . . and we end up forgetting where we are, whose we are and where we're headed. . . We can't remember, was it ice cream or a ham sandwich.
We need these epiphanies, we need revelation, we need the light to shine for us. . . so that we might find our way. . . To the people of Israel in exile Isaiah proclaimed, "Arise, your light has come" Our light. Your light. And on our good days, we remember. . . and the way of peace and hope is before us. . . . on our good days . . . but not every day. We need these days, because sometimes begin by heeding other voices, and we decide that we are not good enough for God and we turn from the light because we see so much of our brokeness and sin . . . and we decide that we are not good enough, that we are being subject to some sort of divine retribution, and the light dims for us. We're not looking for the light of the gospel when that happens. And we begin to wander in ways that are not pleasing to God, ways that we seek to do things to curry God's favor when so much has been given us without those merits. We seek ways to manipulate or impose our criteria on God. This happens when all of these voices clamoring for our attention take over. We need that light to shine for us to remind us that God has gone to a good deal of trouble to call us and claim us and lead us. . . .as we are and where we are.
Consider the Magi. The magi from the East saw a light that led them to the manger. God revealed God's intervention in history to these magi. The magi were not Jews, they lived in Persia. They were not worshippers of the one God of Israel. They weren't, frankly, wise men. They were astrologers. They were the 1st century equivalent of the psychic hotline. They were stargazers, magicians. . . where do you think we get the word, Magic. . . from the magi. Yet God chose to reveal to these people, these non-Jewish people, these Gentiles, who were not even practicing the faith, to reveal the coming of God into history . . the one named Jesus come to save the people from their sins. These soothsayers, chicken gizzard gazers, wandered to the manger and discovered that God had revealed to them the King of the Jews, the one out of whole the light would shine for all nations. God had given them a path and a purpose. If the magi could be directed by God, certainly you and I with our faults and foibles can expect and count on the passionate love of God to visit in our lives . . .can count on the constant, steadfast love of Christ leading and illuminating our way.
St. Paul, the persecutor of the Church, had the light shine on him in a very dramatic way, knocked on his keister, blinded in order to bear the mystery, the revelation, the epiphany, the Christ among the Gentile people, those who were not chosen but are now heirs.
This light reveals the way in which the people can find their way to God and comes to us where we are, as we are.
This light reveals the resistance and the rejection of the status quo, those voices that would call us to clannishness and exclusivity.
Herod was the King of the Jews, given that title by the Romans. Here come the objections of the powers of the state, the Empire Strikes Back, the objection of the world against one that would challenge that authority. The light reveals the danger that the outsiders, too, have been claimed by God. That should effect how we deal with our friends and neighbors, relatives in the workplace and the school . . .how do we share that light, that understanding that God is a God for all people. the light changes things. Gives a path and a purpose.
Our gospel passage ends this morning with the words, they went home by another way.
An encounter with this Jesus changes things, changes your path, takes you home another way. The Magi went home by another way after the revelation of Jesus Christ.
Paul went home by another way when encountered Jesus on the road to Damascus and his journey took him into Gentile nation proclaiming the coming of Christ.
The gospel comes home by another way, the passion and love and fulfillment of God's intention comes home by another way, not just through the temple and Jerusalem. . . . but the Gentiles too, this is a God for all people, unrestricted . . . . and those who encounter that truth, that stand in the light, come home by another way.
We, brothers and sisters, are called home by another way. Jesus is always in the business of alternative way. We called to the way of Jesus, led by the light, called to that path home to fulfillment, and forgiveness and peace. The Path.
Finally, we are called to share that light, that epiphany . . .to be the light today. What did Paul say? that through the church this mystery might be made known. The purpose.
When you get up in the morning and your feet hit the floor and you begin another day on your journey, recall the words of Isaiah . . . "Arise, your light has come" to give you path and purpose. There is one whose name is Jesus come to save his people from their sins and the light shines over the place of his birth. That's the light that shines in our life. . . that's our epiphany, the light that leads us today, each day. It is our path and our purpose. Thanks be to God.
Amen
Copyright (c) 2002 by Pastor Robert J. Rasmus
Home by Another Way
What did you think about this morning when you got up and your feet hit the floor? The routine of the day, I suppose? Work to do, places to go, calls to make? All a part of our routine, our pattern.
Sometimes the way is quite clear for us, where we feel confident and assured about where we're headed and the future seems clear and the present seems manageable. But sometimes, whether by our own choices or by things outside of our control, things don't seem so manageable, the future doesn't see clear, the path doesn't seem so straight and level. And frankly, some mornings are worse. When our feet hit the floor, we step into that deep rut that takes us past the same tired scenery and the same vagueness about what we're about. Every morning when we arise, we begin making choices, even out of our routine, where we will go, what motivates and sustains us. Each day we begin our journey making some choices about where we are headed, who we will follow.
It is the assurance for believers, the followers of Christ, us every morning when our feet hit the floor, is that we are on our way home. We are moving constantly with the Spirit toward fulfillment and the accomplishment of God's purposes. It is a path to which we have been drawn and invited, where the way is made ready for us. It is path and purpose
It easy to forget that. It easy to forget that the one has come who prepares our way. Because all these other things that we carefully plan or we cannot control, can turn us and direct us from the path of hopefulness and purpose and fellowship with Christ. I don't mean to be critical. It is not always clear to us . . . the way. That's why I love the notion of epiphany. Epiphany means revelation and our symbol for epiphany is light. . . a light is cast in darkness and people see and what is God's purpose is revealed. The path is illuminated. We are Epiphany people, you and me, on whom this light has shone and for whom the way has been made clear.
But like I said, it's sometimes quite hard to maintain that perspective. We end up speaking in one language, hearing in another. Messages, purpose can get confused. Michael Deaver, an aide to former President Reagan tells this story. He said, "A man and wife were getting ready for bed one evening and the wife said she felt like having some ice cream. "OK", said her husband, "I'll go get it." She said, "I want vanilla with chocolate sauce" And he said. "OK, vanilla with chocolate sauce" And she said, "Don't forget the cherry on top" He said, "Right, cherry on top" "And," she said, "I want whipped cream." "Right, that's vanilla with chocolate sauce, cherry on top with whipped cream." She said, "Do you want to write it down?" "Nope, that's not necessary."
So the man goes downstairs, and in a few minutes comes back upstairs where his wife had already gotten into bed. And he handed her a bag. She opened and pulled out a ham sandwich. "I told you you should have written down," she said angrily. "You forgot the mustard."
We seem to be caught sometimes in different conversations, hearing different directions from our vocations and our families and the world and our faith . . . and we end up forgetting where we are, whose we are and where we're headed. . . We can't remember, was it ice cream or a ham sandwich.
We need these epiphanies, we need revelation, we need the light to shine for us. . . so that we might find our way. . . To the people of Israel in exile Isaiah proclaimed, "Arise, your light has come" Our light. Your light. And on our good days, we remember. . . and the way of peace and hope is before us. . . . on our good days . . . but not every day. We need these days, because sometimes begin by heeding other voices, and we decide that we are not good enough for God and we turn from the light because we see so much of our brokeness and sin . . . and we decide that we are not good enough, that we are being subject to some sort of divine retribution, and the light dims for us. We're not looking for the light of the gospel when that happens. And we begin to wander in ways that are not pleasing to God, ways that we seek to do things to curry God's favor when so much has been given us without those merits. We seek ways to manipulate or impose our criteria on God. This happens when all of these voices clamoring for our attention take over. We need that light to shine for us to remind us that God has gone to a good deal of trouble to call us and claim us and lead us. . . .as we are and where we are.
Consider the Magi. The magi from the East saw a light that led them to the manger. God revealed God's intervention in history to these magi. The magi were not Jews, they lived in Persia. They were not worshippers of the one God of Israel. They weren't, frankly, wise men. They were astrologers. They were the 1st century equivalent of the psychic hotline. They were stargazers, magicians. . . where do you think we get the word, Magic. . . from the magi. Yet God chose to reveal to these people, these non-Jewish people, these Gentiles, who were not even practicing the faith, to reveal the coming of God into history . . the one named Jesus come to save the people from their sins. These soothsayers, chicken gizzard gazers, wandered to the manger and discovered that God had revealed to them the King of the Jews, the one out of whole the light would shine for all nations. God had given them a path and a purpose. If the magi could be directed by God, certainly you and I with our faults and foibles can expect and count on the passionate love of God to visit in our lives . . .can count on the constant, steadfast love of Christ leading and illuminating our way.
St. Paul, the persecutor of the Church, had the light shine on him in a very dramatic way, knocked on his keister, blinded in order to bear the mystery, the revelation, the epiphany, the Christ among the Gentile people, those who were not chosen but are now heirs.
This light reveals the way in which the people can find their way to God and comes to us where we are, as we are.
This light reveals the resistance and the rejection of the status quo, those voices that would call us to clannishness and exclusivity.
Herod was the King of the Jews, given that title by the Romans. Here come the objections of the powers of the state, the Empire Strikes Back, the objection of the world against one that would challenge that authority. The light reveals the danger that the outsiders, too, have been claimed by God. That should effect how we deal with our friends and neighbors, relatives in the workplace and the school . . .how do we share that light, that understanding that God is a God for all people. the light changes things. Gives a path and a purpose.
Our gospel passage ends this morning with the words, they went home by another way.
An encounter with this Jesus changes things, changes your path, takes you home another way. The Magi went home by another way after the revelation of Jesus Christ.
Paul went home by another way when encountered Jesus on the road to Damascus and his journey took him into Gentile nation proclaiming the coming of Christ.
The gospel comes home by another way, the passion and love and fulfillment of God's intention comes home by another way, not just through the temple and Jerusalem. . . . but the Gentiles too, this is a God for all people, unrestricted . . . . and those who encounter that truth, that stand in the light, come home by another way.
We, brothers and sisters, are called home by another way. Jesus is always in the business of alternative way. We called to the way of Jesus, led by the light, called to that path home to fulfillment, and forgiveness and peace. The Path.
Finally, we are called to share that light, that epiphany . . .to be the light today. What did Paul say? that through the church this mystery might be made known. The purpose.
When you get up in the morning and your feet hit the floor and you begin another day on your journey, recall the words of Isaiah . . . "Arise, your light has come" to give you path and purpose. There is one whose name is Jesus come to save his people from their sins and the light shines over the place of his birth. That's the light that shines in our life. . . that's our epiphany, the light that leads us today, each day. It is our path and our purpose. Thanks be to God.
Amen
Copyright (c) 2002 by Pastor Robert J. Rasmus