Epiphany 3C Dropping Our Nets 1.26.20

+Immediately they left their nets and followed him. 

We’ve heard these words before, we know these call stories well, they’re iconic not only to Christianity but to our culture as a whole. They left their nets, their boats, their families, to follow a complete and utter stranger. Somehow we hear these stories without batting an eye, as if this was the most normal thing, ever. 

But think about it. You’re sitting at your desk at work, or you’re doing housework, or you’re out to dinner with friends and a complete and utter stranger says to you, come and follow me. And. You. Go.

Seriously…who does this? 

The answer is fairly obvious—no one! No one in their right mind does this, right? Right. But here’s the deal, those who follow Jesus—-the disciples then and us, now, are not in our right minds for we are willing to live a life of love and light in a world of hate and darkness. A life of justice and compassion, in a world of injustice and intolerance. A life of welcome in a world of “stay out.” A life of speaking up for the voiceless in a world of “I can’t hear you,” a life of laughter in a world of sobbing. It’s the most counter-cultural, outrageous and outlandish thing we can do in 21st century America. Because today, not unlike 1st century Galilee, people are lost in the dark, they’re adrift in anger, they’re lonely and frightened and confused. People are looking for a way out. 

Folks, today is a big day in the life of St Patrick’s. It’s a day of change—of beginnings and endings—a day that marks a movement away from some things, toward other things. It isn’t easy to change.  It isn’t easy to move from the familiar to the unfamiliar. And yet, it is at the very base of our faith that we are called to do just that. 

For the past couple of years I have been pushing the leadership of St Patrick’s to move beyond working to ensure your existence and into a following where the Spirit longs for you to go.  You are a hearty group of folks who get things done….where you sometimes stumble is remembering why you are doing the things that you do. The whole purpose for the existence of St Patrick’s Church in Cheektowaga is to be a place where people can bring their weary hearts, their lonely souls and be inspired to drop the nets of whatever weighs them down and follow Him. 

To be that for this hurting world you—-the people of St Patrick’s—need to be willing to drop your own nets—-the nets of “we’ve always done it this way,” the nets of “if we don’t do this, there won’t be enough,” the nets of “I don’t like how this is going so I’m going to leave and not come back until things are done the way I like them, the way that won’t cause me any discomfort or pain or sadness.” 

In a few minutes you will undertake the councils of the church. You will elect vestry members and a warden. You will hear about changes in service schedules and news about a new priest. 

Consider this a “Dropping your nets and Follow Me” moment. 

  As we move through the rest of the morning I ask you to be willing to drop the nets of whatever worries you, scares you, angers you or disappoints you and to open your hearts and your minds to the wonder that is Jesus Christ. 

When it came time for Jesus to begin his adult ministry, the first thing that he did was form a community. God as given to us through Jesus Christ is most beautifully expressed when we, as a community, praise his name and go out to the world doing his work. When we do that people notice, leading them to  drop their own nets and follow him. 

So, let us drop our nets, let us lead others to do likewise and together let us, in all things and at all times, Follow Him.

Amen.

Instead of an Address, An Invitation/ Following Christ in All that We Do Epiphany 2A

+As so often is the case, the disciples in this initial call story in John’s Gospel have no idea what to do nor do they have any idea how to interact with Jesus. Intrigued/confused/drawn toward this man whom the Baptist refers to as the Lamb of God, the disciples start following Jesus.… literally. They have no idea who he is and instead of walking up to him and introducing themselves they literally follow him as we journeys down the road….follow him….you know kind of like that odd person at the grocery store who follows behind you a little too closely? Jesus stops, turns and inquires: what are you looking for? Instead of expressing some deep theological longing they simply reply, “where are you staying?” Right then and there Jesus could have nipped this awkward encounter in the bud by saying—Bethany or Capernaum—-but he doesn’t. He doesn’t because Jesus is aware enough to realize they don’t care where he lives, they care that their teacher, John the Baptist, has labeled him the Lamb of God….John is decreasing and Jesus is increasing. The disciples had sensed  that and so they begin to follow Jesus in a somewhat stalker type of way. But Jesus gets it and instead of giving them an address, offers them an invitation: Come and See. 

Within this story we find our own Christian task:

The people we’re trying to reach—-those who walk or drive by this beautiful church but have never stepped through the doors, those who feel so hopeless and helpless, those are are lost and have no idea they can be found——those people don’t need to hear us preach about how great it is to be a follower of Jesus, they don’t need an exhortation on the glories of the Holy Trinity, they don’t need a lecture on the ten commandments or the BCP. No, these people need to see. They need to see the love of God, the compassion of Jesus Christ, the wisdom of the Holy Spirit, in action. They need to see it at work in the world. They need to see a way out of their hopelessness, out of their lost-ness. They don’t need to hear about it. They need to see it, experience it, feel it. Know it deep in their souls.

And this task—-this holy and sacred task— has been assigned to us. 

Remember last week when we renewed our baptismal vows? Those vows are our compass, our guide, our road map for life. We are to love God with our whole heart and mind and soul. We are to follow the teachings of Jesus Christ in all that we do,. We are to, when we mess up, repent and try again. And in all things and all times we are to respect the dignity of every single human being. No exceptions. 

When we do this— when we follow these guidelines—people will notice, they will see and they will be, just as the early disciples were, intrigued, confused, and drawn by this way of being we exhibit. 

They’ll be intrigued by the self-assuredness that comes with knowing we are loved, no exceptions.

They will be drawn to the love that we spread to all those whom we encounter.

‘They will be confused by how there can be hope in this world of darkness and fear. 

That confusion is good, because it is that confusion which draws them toward us, intrigued by how it is we can live this way. And when they ask us? 

We invite them to come and see, come and learn, come and be loved.

Now to do this—-to live into the fullness of what we were anointed to be and to do at our baptism—-requires strength, courage, and faith. 

It’s easy for us to leave this work of evangelism, this work of spreading love, this work of being a beacon of hope and light—-to others. It’s easy for us to say we don’t have what it takes, we are not good enough, smart enough, faithful enough to do this work. 

I’ve been there before, I’m sure I’ll be there again. But….we must never forget the bumbling, bewildered and belligerent disciples. They were a most unlikely ragtag group of followers and yet it was they whom Jesus chose. The messy, the doubting, the denying 12. You see, God loves our messiness. Jesus embraces our confusion, our fear, our trembling. It’s through our very human foibles and follies that the love of God, the peace of Christ, and the sustaining hope of the Holy Spirit lives and moves and has its being. 

The disciples noticed Jesus.

They were intrigued by Jesus.

They were drawn to Jesus.

They were confused by Jesus. 

In other words they were just like us….

my siblings in Christ… let us go and be seen… let us go and be noticed…. let us go and be just who it is God created us to be…followers of God’s Son, our Savior Jesus Christ.

For when we do that, when we live as Jesus lived, when we love as Jesus loved, we—-yes you and me— will change this world. 

Amen. And Alleluia.

Being Baptized into a Life of Disruption The Baptism of Christ Yr A

+Welcome to the Baptism of Christ…the day the adult Jesus is baptized and begins his ministry. It’s a bit confusing to celebrate this day so soon after Jesus’ birth. 2 1/2 weeks ago he was a babe in a manger, today he is 30 years old. The whole thing feels a bit disruptive to me...the incongruence a bit dizzying.
So how is it all connected—-the baptism, the incarnation and the Epiphany theme of manifesting Christ in all things?
    Depending on what religious tradition you were raised in, your answer might differ: more mainline protestant faiths like Lutheran, Baptist, Methodist and Presbyterians would say that baptism is the bath which cleanses us and redeems us from the sin we will enter in life, the mistakes and missteps we’ll take. If we’ve been washed with the waters of baptism we have an assurance of forgiveness. Forever. If you were raised  Roman Catholic or in the pre-liturgical renewal Episcopal Church the act of baptism was viewed as an admittance ticket of a sort. Once baptized you were on the road to being able to do things like receive communion and had the inside track to eternal life. Once baptized you were---yes even if you were baptized as an infant---returned to a place of purity, the stain of Original Sin washed away. You had your get out of purgatory for free card stamped.
Up until the aforementioned liturgical renewal of 1979, baptism was less a theological event and more a  social one— a private occasion with a few family and friends, followed by some cake and punch—-the congregation as a whole didn’t play a role.
      I’m not saying these reasons for baptism are wrong, but I do think they miss the main point of baptism as so clearly laid out on page 298 of the Book of Common Prayer: “Holy Baptism is full initiation by water and the Holy Spirit into Christ’s Body the church. The bond which God establishes in Baptism is indissoluble.”
There isn’t any grey area here folks. The bond we make with God and the bond God makes with us at baptism is forever. Nothing ….NOTHING can diminish, dissolve or destroy it. Nothing we think, nothing we do, nothing we fail to do. It’s indissoluble. It is forever.
It’s a wonderful, life-giving transaction: we promise God and God promises us.
     Now, there is a certain logical order to celebrating Christ’s baptism a few weeks after his birth—after all that’s how baptism occurs for most of us. We’re born and then a few weeks or months later, we’re baptized.
But that’s not why we have the Baptism of Christ on our calendar today.
We commemorate Jesus’ baptism 2 ½ weeks after his birth because it is the next step in comprehending just what happened with his birth and life among us (that is, the incarnation) it is the next step in understanding how we are to be a manifestation of Christ in the world (that is, the Epiphany).
Jesus wasn’t baptized because he needed to be admitted to some religious organization. He wasn’t baptized to be washed of sin, He wasn’t baptized so he could wear a handsome white suit and eat cake afterwards.
Jesus was baptized because he was fulfilling all righteousness. He was fulfilling the act of the incarnation…he was being submerged in the muddy waters of the Jordan to emerge reborn, renewed and ready for his ministry. He was dying to his life as a regular young man and being born into his life as our Savior, our Teacher, our Lord.
Jesus’ baptism strengthened him, readied him, oriented him to his life of Faith.
Baptism—Jesus’ and our own-- provides the blueprint for a life of Faith.
It equips us to see Christ at work in the world and to be Christ’s eyes and ears, hands and feet, wherever we go.
Why do we commemorate Jesus’ baptism so soon after the celebration of his birth? Because Jesus’ birth served as the inaugural act of forming the Body of Christ here on earth. God came to live among us, as one of us, in an effort to bring God’s Kingdom to reign in this world.
God took on a human body in order to establish an impenetrable indissoluble Body of Love and Light, of Hope and Joy right here, right now.
And that Body grows, its reach lengthens, its impact increases, each and every-time a person is baptized.
The goal of our faith is to spread the Body of Christ, by being the Body of Christ.
We’re equipped to do that by virtue of our baptism, we are empowered to do that by the community of faith in which we live and worship and we are drawn to do that through the Love of God as given to us in that baby laid in a manger, that man baptized in the River Jordan and that Lord whose light shines on us in all that we do.
So yes, the baptism of the adult Jesus seems a bit disruptive so soon after Christmas but disruption is really the name of the Christian game. And it is what we’ve all been baptized into—-a life of holy disruption. Thanks be to God.
Amen.

He's Here. Now What? Epiphany 2020

+Epiphany is the season of manifestation—-of noticing—-of realizing—-of awareness…
 As the Magi approached Bethlehem, King Herod noticed. And he wasn’t pleased. Herod knew something about these Zoroastrian star-gazers from the East. He knew that it had to be quite the star to bring them all the way to Bethlehem…and once the Magi arrived his worse fears were confirmed---the star—the crazy, wild star, was recognizing the birth of another King, a different type of King---a messiah, The messiah. The light of the world that promised to change…EVERYTHING. And Herod?
He didn't like it one bit. The birth of the Messiah, the Prince of Peace? Another King of the Jews? He’d have none of this. You see, there's no one more sensitive to a threat--- real/or imagined-- than a puppet king with an inferiority complex. So, reacting out of his fear, Herod tried to trick the Magi into bringing the baby to him, so he could have the baby Jesus killed. But the Magi were smart, and after warning Mary and Joseph to get out of dodge, they went home by a different route—avoiding Herod at all costs—for this baby, this Jesus? He was something to be adored. Something to behold. And most certainly something to protect.
 So here we are, some 12 days after the birth of this Jesus facing the question—-just who is this Jesus?
 A King, a God, a man, a Son, a prophet, a preacher, a revolutionary, a Messiah?
Yes. And then some.
Who is he? What is he? Why is he? It's the question of this season of Epiphany, this season of manifestation—-of noticing—-of realizing—-of awareness…

Or are you already past it all? Has the tree come down, have the lights lost their charm, have the presents been tossed aside?
Are we still awash in the wonder of Christmas Eve?
Or have we moved on, back to the same ol’ same ol’?
    From the announcement of Gabriel, the visit to Elizabeth, the birth in the barn, the arrival of the Magi,  and in a few weeks, the presentation at the temple, we hear that,  “Mary treasured all these words and pondered them in her heart.”
Our Epiphany challenge, our Epiphany task is to do as Mary, to ponder all that has occurred, to open our eyes to what and how and where “God among us” is taking shape.
Epiphany is a time to ponder, to adjust, to understand, to comprehend.
A time to notice just how this whole miracle that just happened manifests itself in our lives.
It’s a tall order, I know. The stores have replaced the Christmas and New Year’s displays with Valentine’s Day, all those mundane things that demand so much of our attention are nagging at us.
Are we pondering the Christmas miracle in our hearts, or have we already returned to business as usual?
Folks, something astounding has happened.
God in the flesh has come to live among us, as one of us.
Did you notice? Do you notice, still?
At the moment of his birth, the cosmos cried out in exultation by flashing that dazzling star.
The heavenly hosts burst into song across the Bethlehem hills.
The shepherds noticed.
The star gazers in the east noticed.
Herod noticed.
But do we?
     Epiphany is all about the reality of “God among us” showing and shining in the world.
Does this reality excite you and fill you with joy? Or does it terrify you and fill you with fear? Who are you in this story? The fascinated Magi, the cowering, plotting Herod or the terrified and thrilled, scared and amazed shepherds? Maybe you’re Mary and Joseph, quietly pondering, silently trusting…
Are you filled with expectation about just who this Jesus will be and what he will do with us and through us?
Or are you Herod, threatened by anything that challenges the status quo, leery of anything new, anything different?
 The birth of our Savior caused the stars, the planets, and the galaxies, to erupt in shiny exultation, intriguing the Magi, terrifying the  shepherds, baffling the Holy Family, infuriating Herod.
But what about You and what about me?
Are we bursting with this Good News?
Are we ready to arise and let the light of Christ shine upon us?
I hope so. Because we’ve been given the greatest gift of all time---God Among Us. Right Here and Right Now.
The season of Epiphany is the season of acknowledging that God Among us in the World isn’t something to celebrate for one day and then go back to business as usual.
Epiphany is a time to ponder, to accept, to receive and then to go out into the world, shining the light, life, and love of Christ on everyone, everywhere. Always.
Because when we do that, we will change the world.



Amen.