The Church of the Good Shepherd, Richmond, VA
The term epiphany means "to show" or "to make known" or even "to reveal." In Western churches, it celebrates the coming of the wise men bringing gifts to visit the Christ child, who by so doing "reveal" Jesus to the world as Lord and King. In some Central and South American countries influenced by Catholic tradition, Three Kings’ Day, or the night before, is the time for opening Christmas presents. In Eastern churches, the Theophany commemorates Jesus’ baptism. In some churches the day is celebrated as Christmas, with Epiphany occurring on January 19.
As with most aspects of the Christian liturgical calendar, Epiphany has theological significance as a teaching tool in the church. The Wise Men or Magi who brought gifts to the infant Jesus were the first Gentiles to acknowledge Jesus as "King" and so were the first to "show" or "reveal" Jesus to a wider world as the incarnate Christ.
This morning's Gospel is another form of Epiphany--the public baptism and celestial introduction of Jesus as the messiah. In fact, epiphany is a recurring theme of the Gospels where there are a number of manifestations and revelations of the divine nature of Christ.
But that was then . . .
Epiphany today is now observed as a time of focusing on the mission of the church in reaching others by "showing" Jesus as the Savior of all people. It is also a time of focusing on Christian brotherhood and fellowship, especially in healing the divisions of prejudice and bigotry that we all too often create among God’s children.
But that is easier said than done; easier visualized than accomplished; easier preached than practiced.
For two millennia, the Church, which burst forth from the tomb and was forged in the fire of the Holy Spirit at Pentecost, and was built upon the fervor and faith of the Apostles and Paul, has prevailed through persecutions, corruption, inquisitions, reformations, renewals, redefinitions, political correctness, and cultural sensitivities . . .
Endured the emperors Caligula and Nero, the Visigoths, Vandals, the Mongols under Attila the Hun, Adolph Hitler, Joseph Stalin and MaoTseTung;
Survived leadership that included heretics, lunatics, psuedo-intellectuals, megalomaniacs, and outright tyrants;
Remained steadfast through the “us” generation, the “me” generation, and the X generation, the Now generation;
Outdistanced astrology, Dianetics and Scientology, encounter groups and the God is dead movement of the 1960’s;
It has withstood the offbeat musings of the Bishops Pike and Spong, the likes of L. Ron Hubbard, and the greedy hypocrisy of Jim Baker and Jimmy Swaggart;
And currently it struggles against the challenges of New Age religion and the new spirituality; and the subtle destroyers masquerading in the so-called scholarly searches for the historical Christ . . . insidiously seeking the demystification and debunking of our faith.
That is one amazing story of survival.
In this first decade of the third millennium of our Lord, can we, I wonder, survive what I believe to be the most rigorous test yet—the strength and stamina of our personal faith in the face of a renewed onslaught that may end up dwarfing the efforts of the Romans to stamp out the faith during the early years of Christianity. As I look around me, I think I see a lot of folks reasonably comfortable with where they are at with respect to their faith. I am not sure I see the kind of commitment and strength it took to bring the Church of Jesus Christ through those first 2000 years.
And where I find pockets of devout and active Christians, I see them turning that intensity inward and staying within the safety of those like themselves. They for sure have maintained a personal right relationship with the Father . . . spend hours in personal and corporate worship. But they have been reluctant to breakout of their warm and comfortable Christian wombs to create an epiphany for those less sure, less committed, or less aware of the power and presence of our Lord. I see personal withdrawal in the face of challenge, and unwillingness to step out in faith, to risk personal comfort, to trust that the Lord will provide our needs if we have the courage to share our largess with him.
As a community, some of us shared the Feast of the Epiphany together this past Friday—and if you did, you heard me say Epiphany is sort of a coming out party for Christians—a time to step into the light, to examine our own personal commitment to the Christ and to his Holy Church. In my personal prayer time, I did that, and now I want to share that with you. Could you pledge yourself to this Christian commitment:
I won’t ask you to repeat it, but . . . .be alert now—
I’m part of the fellowship of the unashamed. I have Holy Spirit power. The die has been cast. I have stepped over the line. The decision has been made. I am a disciple of His. I won’t look back, let up, slow down, back away or be still. I no longer need preeminence, power, prosperity, position, promotions, plaudits, or popularity. I don’t have to be right, first, revered, recognized, praised, regarded or rewarded. I now live by faith, lean on His presence, walk by patience, live by prayer, and labor by power. My face is set, my gait is fast, my companions few, my guide reliable, my mission clear. I cannot be bought, compromised, detoured, lured away, turned back, deluded or delayed. I will not flinch in the face of sacrifice, hesitate in the presence of adversity, negotiate at the table of the enemy, ponder at the pool of popularity, or meander in the maze of mediocrity. I won’t give up, shut up, let up, until I have stood up, stored up, prayed up, paid up, preached up for the cause of Christ. I am a disciple of Jesus. And when He comes for His own, He will have no problem recognizing me—my banner will be flying high.
It's more than a platter full. In a world filled with compromises and finding the path of least resistance accompanied by the highest level of comfort we can afford, that statement is impractical, unrealistic, and unobtainable.
But this I believe . . . if we fall too many steps short of that commitment, we as Christians will not survive another millennium. In just a few minutes, as we renew our baptismal vows—recalling today’s Gospel story of the Lord’s own baptism. I hope that as we renew those vows, that we take each question deep into our hearts and respond to each with our very souls. And that when we all answer the charge "Will you proclaim by word and example the Good news of God and Christ?" that we offer to God a resounding "I will, with God's help." And that help is always only a short prayer away.
And he said to them, "Go into the world and preach the Gospel to all the nations, and make disciples of them all."
Let us pray:
Father, we thank you for revealing yourself to us in Jesus the Christ, we who once were not your people, but whom you chose to adopt as your people. We realize that it was not because of our own righteousness, or our own superior wisdom, or strength, or power, or numbers. It was simply because you loved us, and chose to show us that love in Jesus. As you have accepted us when we did not deserve your love, will you help us accept those whom we find it hard to love? Will you fill us so full of your love Father that there is no room for intolerance. As you have forgiven us much, will you enable us with your strength to forgive others even more? Enable us Father, through your abiding Presence among us, to live our lives in a manner worthy of the Savior we serve? In the brightness of your light of Epiphany, Father, accept all that I am, my entire liberty, my memory my understanding, and my will. All that I am and all that I have, you have given to me; and I give back to you that due portion to be disposed of according to your good pleasure. May we, through your guidance and our faithful obedience, find new avenues in ways we have not imagined of holding the light of your love so that it may be a light of revelation for everyone we come in contact with. May our presence and love and forbearance bring an epiphany to all those who seek peace and have not found you. All this we ask Father through your Son and our Savior Jesus Christ. Amen.