An Attribute for A New Church: Christ-ian

As I think about a new church for the days ahead of us, I think it needs to be Christian –
that is, adhering to  the priorities of God: mercy, forgiveness, hospitality, and compassion.

Micah 6:6-8
I Corinthians

Attributes for A New Church: 1. Christ-ian

There is no church other than the people who gather at a specific place and time “to celebrate Emmanuel (God Being With Us).”

All of the organizations and structures and buildings that we call “church”
fade to the background to this fundamental principal.
There is no church other than the people who gather at a specific place and time “to celebrate Emmanuel (God Being With Us).”

Each one of us in this room value our faith –
and it is obvious that this expression of our faith is important to us.

More than likely, each one of us probably arrived at our ideas of how faith is important to us in different ways:
– some folks learn by observation
– some remember lessons being taught (and rewards promised
– some learn by trial and error –
    and things seem to be better for us,
    we feel better about ourselves and our world
    and our life
    when we go to church
– some were influenced by mentors –
    a person (or persons) who lived their life in a way we want to emulate - as an example of a life well-lived.

Those of us who identify ourselves with the Christian faith, lift us the life, the teaching, the example of the Jesus that we know through the stories gathered in our Bible.

When we reflect on it, we know that Jesus knew himself and the world around him through the eyes of his Jewish faith.

At the risk of stating the obvious, there is no record of Jesus ever starting a church.
Jesus lived as and among the Jewish community.
Jesus was a Jew.
Jesus ministered and taught among Jews as a Jew.
About a year ago, a theologian and teacher,
Philip Gulley, published a book titled,
If The Church Were Christian. 
Early on in the book Philip Gulley reminds the reader that Everything [Jesus] said and did grew out of his Jewish faith. 
As in all religions, there were those in Judaism who’d forgotten and forsaken principles.
What first-century Judaism needed wasn’t a new revelation, but the reminder of a previous one.
The prophets preceding Jesus had described the priorities of God – mercy, forgiveness, hospitality, and compassion.
Jesus exemplified those virtues,
expanded their meaning for his generation,
and through the power of his good example,
urged others to not only imitate his works,
but to exceed them.  (P. 25)

Jesus argued for humility, modesty, and putting others before self.
This was a man committed to faithfully living out the priorities of God’s reign and helping others do the same.  (P. 25)

Mercy, forgiveness, hospitality, and compassion – the priorities of God .

This is what Jesus did.
This is what Jesus taught.
This is the way Jesus lived his life.
This is what Jesus proclaimed for folks in his day –
and this is what we hear for us in our day as well.

He was committed to faithfully living out the priorities of God’s reign
and helping others to do the same. [p. 25]

According to Philip Gulley, if the church were Christian, then Jesus would be a model for living rather than an object of worship.
If the church were Christian, then affirming our potential would be more important that condemning our brokenness.
If the church were Christian, then reconciliation would be valued over judgement.
If the church were Christian, then gracious behavior would be more important than right belief.
If the church were Christian, then inviting question would be valued more than supplying answers.
If the church were Christian, then encouraging personal exploration would me more important than communal uniformity.
If the church were Christian, then meeting needs would be more important than maintaining institutions.
If the church were Christian, then peace would be more important than power.
If the church were Christian, then it would care more about live and less about sex.
If the church were Christian, then this life would be more important than the afterlife.
Well, maybe you get the idea.

That’s his list.
But, if you thought about it, each of us could come up with our own list of attributes we might think of if the church were Christian . . .

So often our ideas of Church get hung up on definitions and explanations that were decided by committees –
the first being held over 300 years after Jesus lived and died –
a council of men appointed by the Emperor with the political charge to come up with an orthodoxy –
a system of faith –
that would unite all of the different Christian communities throughout the Empire.
Like today,
like those who gathered during the Constitutional Convention in 1787 in Philadelphia,
compromise was the name of the game.
Creative notions were explored to get most believers on board to support a new church.
Doctrines were developed.
A statement was written that spelled out the commonly accepted beliefs of the new church.

Invariably, there was some collateral damage –
some “Christian” communities could not,
would not, ascribe to the new orthodoxy.
And, they were disallowed to practice their faith with protection from the emperor.

Many of the “elements” of our belief that they came up with still exist today –
and we know them as “bed rocks” of our faith –
and in many ways have become to define what Christianity is today.

The outcomes of the council of Nicea stood unquestioned and defined the faith for over 1000 years.
In the 16th century, several factors came to bear that resulted in what is known today as the Protestant Reformation.
Faithful Christians questioned the old orthodoxy and came up new ways of being church,
new ways of being church,
new definitions of Christian faith.

Presbyterians were a direct outcome of that Reformation –
the motto became “a church that is reformed and always reforming.”

The Reformation, at its essence, was an effort to get the church to be more “Christian” –
more about the priorities of God
than the priorities of the political machinery.

But, alas, for many reasons I suppose, there are many who call themselves Christians today who focus more on defending the orthodoxy of our belief system,
than on striving toward faithful living out the priorities of God’s reign.

Today, it is not hard to find any number of examples of people calling themselves Christian and taking absurd actions that fly in the face of what Jesus understood and did.

Mercy, forgiveness, hospitality, and compassion – the priorities of God.

As I think about a new church for the days ahead of us, I think it needs to be Christian –
that is, adhering to  the priorities of God: mercy, forgiveness, hospitality, and compassion.

You and I get something out of the faith that gets fleshed out here Sunday after Sunday after Sunday.

You and I (and people all over the country and all over the world) are part of something much larger than ourselves.

When we acknowledge Jesus as prefector of our faith, we realize that our call is the same as what Jesus thought his was.
It’s what he did:
Our good news is that we can find life in his example – accepting the excluded,
healing the sick,
strengthening the weak,
loving the despised,
and challenging the powerful to use their influence redemptively.
Jesus accomplished what he did because of his steadfast dedication to the priorities of God.

It’s what you and I are to do, isn’t it?
It’s what we do do, isn’t it?
As we live the days of our lives – with all the vicissitudes each day brings.

I am more sure today than ever before, as we dream of a new church for the days ahead,
the first attribute to be considered is that it is to be based on the values of Jesus.

What if a church were purposely organized around  the priorities of God: mercy, forgiveness, hospitality, and compassion?
What if our new church reflected the example of the ministry of Jesus:
accepting the excluded
healing the sick,
strengthening the weak,
loving the despised,
and challenging the powerful to use their influence redemptively.

What if a new church for a new day were Christian?

Amen.

The congregation of Christ Presbyterian Church in Drexel Hill, Pennsylvania, USA, experienced this sermon during a worship service on Sunday, January 15, 2012.

The Light Still Shines

Epiphany is one of the oldest days of celebration recognized by the church – they celebrated the Day of Epiphany for several hundred years before anyone thought of celebrating the day of the birth of the baby Jesus. 

Truth be told, I think we should do far more with the twelve days of Christmas and Epiphany than we do.  

The deepest satisfactions in life are not those objects of gold, frankincense or myrrh . . .
The secret lies not in our possessions,
but in taking possession of ourselves.
It's the light that burns from within that truly counts.

Isaiah 60:1-6
Matthew 2:1-12

Maybe you heard the story about  the elephant who was thoroughly enjoying himself as he splashed about in the river.
And a mouse ran up to the sandy shore.
It was obvious that the mouse was agitated and disturbed about something.
And, the mouse yelled at the elephant, "Come out of the water now."
The old elephant  laughed and said, "Why should I come out?"
The mouse was not about to be humiliated by this mountain of flesh. He kept yelling and yelling.
The elephant realized that if he wanted any peace and quiet he had better come out of the water.
So, slowly the elephant lumbered out of the water and stood on the shore towering over the mouse.
And spoke: "Now, why did you want me to come out of the water?"
The mouse looked up and said, "I wanted to see if you were wearing my bathing suit."

Of course, it is a nonsensical story,
but the theological punch line is this:
It is easier for us to understand how an elephant could wear the mouse's bathing suit than it is for us to understand the awesome mystery of the incarnation – Emannuel – God's Word became flesh. 
The God of all creation became a tiny babe in a manger.

     Today we celebrate the Epiphany –  we call it Epiphany Sunday. 
Actually, the church recognizes the Day of Epiphany as being January 6 – the first day after the twelve days of Christmas – but, most churches celebrate on the Sunday closest to January 6.
(So, sometimes Epiphany Sunday is a couple of days before, and sometimes a couple of days after January 6.)

    It may surprise you to know that many cultures of the world make far more to do over the twelve days of Christmas and Epiphany than they do over Christmas day itself. 
In fact, Epiphany is one of the oldest days of celebration recognized by the church – they celebrated the Day of Epiphany for several hundred years before anyone thought of celebrating the day of the birth of the baby Jesus.
Truth be told, I think we should do far more with the twelve days of Christmas and Epiphany than we do. 

 So today, on this Epiphany Sunday, we remember the story:
We remember that thousands of years ago those mysterious strangers were heading toward Bethlehem.
As everyone knows, they came to Bethlehem "following yonder star."

According to convention they were three kings who made their way to the stable where Jesus was born.
They made their journey in fulfillment of the prophecy of old:
"The Lord will rise upon you and God's glory will be seen over you. The nations will come to your light, even kings to the brightness of your rising."
According to tradition those kings had decoded the secrets of the stars;
they realized that the mysterious light in the sky brought news of a  new ruler.
So they traveled toward Bethlehem in homage to the one who would eventually rise to a position of preeminence and power.
But when the magi told their story to King Herod it touched off his paranoia and fear.
Suspecting that Herod would want this pretender to the throne put to death, the three visitors paid a brief visit to the manger,
left their gifts of gold, frankincense and myrrh,
but departed for home by another way.

So three ancient monarchs followed a star to a place  where a child was born... so what?

What does that series of events so long ago have to offer us, here in the modern world where star-gazing and even the title of King seem to convey such little power?

You have, no doubt, heard that is the oft quoted advice of Ralph Waldo Emerson:
Hitch your wagon to a star.

Hitch your wagon to a star. 
That was the philosopher's way of saying that all of us need high ideals, a commanding sense of purpose, great ambitions.

Well, these days, we are pretty apprehensive, aren’t we?
I don’t know about you, but before hitching my wagon to a star, I’ve learned that I'd better take a closer look at the fine print.
I'd like to read the warning labels and make  sure what kind of an adventure I'm signing up for.
Before heading off into parts unknown, I'd like to check and see that  the fail safe systems are in order, [wouldn’t you?]
that the seat belts are fastened,
and above all, that the landing gear is operational.

In fact, the story of Epiphany reveals as much about the dangers of star gazing as its promise.

A careful reading of the Bible reveals a number of telling details.

First, we notice that those strange and mysterious visitors to Mary and Joseph and the new baby,  are nowhere referred to as kings.
Nowhere is it specified that there were three royal visitors to the Christ child.
Though most modern versions of the Bible translate the Greek word as “wise men” – one calls them a band of scholars, another “some men who studied the stars”,  the word is magi – the same Greek word that we use for magician – and magic.
And again, it's plural, to be sure, but we just don't  know how many of them there were;
one ancient source puts their number at twelve – another at 120.
And the group might easily have included women.
(Only hundreds of years after the fact have we come to imagine three kings beside the manger. )

In fact, these magi were a common sight in the Middle East of that time.
Magi traveled constantly throughout the Mediterranean world, sometimes playing the part of sorcerers and magicians,
sometimes practicing the burgeoning science of astronomy,
sometimes selling their services as interpreters of dreams, and/or purveyors of wisdom and enchantment in the court of many a monarch.

The magi were descendants of the Medes, a people who once constituted a great empire.
But the Medes were conquered by the Persians and so they lived as a subject people.
Once they mounted a rebellion against their Persian oppressors,
but they were hopelessly overpowered and the rebellion was crushed.
And, from that hour the Medes were relegated to the sidelines of history,
their kings and queens became the gypsies of the ancient world.
They were ministers without portfolio,
They were kings without a country,
They were queens without a crown.
They turned to the stars for guidance because they had no armies,
they had no subjects,
they had no territory to call their own.
They would turn up in all the palaces of the empire ingratiating themselves to the real potentates of the world, but they had no province of their own.

The magi had become prisoners of their own dreams,
hoping beyond hope to recover the lost tribes and territories.
By sheer exertion of wit and skill they managed to maintain a finger hold in the palaces of the empire, but no matter how successful they became,
they could not forget the basic fact that they were a defeated people.

But, then one day the magi of our story saw a star shining in the east.
They saw a strange light on the horizon, and for one last time, the dream of glory beckoned within them.
Once again they gathered their belongings,
they packed their camels,
they carefully wrapped those trinkets of gold, frankincense and myrrh,
and mounted their horses [most certainly, folks of their class and ilk would not ride camels] and they headed out, following yonder star.

Now this is one of the major points of this story, and one of the reasons it is told again and again every year at this time, [don’t miss it]
Like everyone else in the world –
like everyone else in Bethlehem at the time –
like everyone else in Jerusalem –
like everyone else in Rome or in Egypt –
like everyone else in the world – 
Until this encounter with the Christ child, they believed that the favors of God belonged to the rich, the powerful and the mighty.

But in Bethlehem they saw the truth.
All of us -
all people -
are simply lost souls looking for a star that will not fail.

And there is no star in the sky that will lead us to the truth.
He is the bright morning star that rises in our consciousness.
He is the light that shines when we see that God has found a dwelling place within us.

And so they turned over their gold, frankincense and myrrh,
not in tribute to a new king,
but in the realization that they would no longer need these trappings of their former life.

Some scholars have even suggested that the gold, frankincense and myrrh were not meant as gifts. Rather these were the tools and instruments of their magical arts.
These were the props they used in spinning their illusions of power.
But what they found in that stable in Bethlehem made these paraphernalia of an ancient superstition suddenly obsolete.
No longer would the magi search in vain for the glory of a forgotten empire.
Now they could live as a free people knowing that God has a sure  foothold in the here and now.
All the light we need is here within us.
If only we have the faith and courage to look and see!

When we read the story of the magi carefully
everything is turned around 180 degrees.
Christ is not glorified because kings come to do him honor,
rather these  would-be kings are liberated from their dreams of power and glory and they leave Bethlehem a free people.

More truly free then they had ever been even in former days of imperial majesty.

Now that the hustle and bustle of Christmas are behind us,
now that the ritual of exchanging gifts is past,
you and I are free to receive the true gift of this season.
And that is the same gift which the magi received so long ago in a crowded manger.
In Christ we are freed from the necessity to shore up our lives with the trappings of wealth, power, fame or other forms of stardom.

The deepest satisfactions in life are not those objects of gold, frankincense or myrrh,
not those dvd players,
not those fancy cars,
not those Oscars,
not those superbowl championships or any other honors that the world has to give.

The secret lies not in our possessions,
but in taking possession of ourselves.
It's the light that burns from within that truly counts.

Rather than searching the distant stars for the secrets of our destiny as the magi did,
we need only survey the quiet places of our own hearts.

It is appropriate that we celebrate this season, not with relics of gold, frankincense or myrrh, the trinkets of astrologers.
Instead we turn to the simplest of things,
a word of truth,
a song,
a prayer,
a warm welcome to ones we love,
the struggle to do the work of justice and to fulfill God's promise of peace.
It is about Emmanuel! 

In the birth of this baby Jesus,
God has come as close to us as the bones of our own bodies,
as near as the blood coursing through our veins.

He is our bright morning star,
a light that shines within our hearts even when all else fails.

Let us not hitch our wagons to any lesser star than this!

Amen.

The congregation of Christ Presbyterian Church in Drexel Hill, Pennsylvania, USA, experienced this sermon during a worship service on Epiphany Sunday, January 8, 2012.

Each Day is a God-Given Clean Slate

It’s good that we are here on the first day of the new year.

There is no real reason why one day on the calendar should bear more significance than any other day of the year.
Yet, still we invest the changing of the year with a great deal of meaning, don’t we?
It is a time of hope,
It is a time of planning,
It is a time of vision-casting,
And, of course, it is a time for resolutions.


Ecclesiastes 3:1-13
Revelation 21:1-6a

This is the Second Sunday of Christmastide – the eighth day of Christmas. 
Christmastide  is the shortest season of the Church year – just 12 days from December 25 to January 6 – the day of Epiphany. 
We will celebrate Epiphany next Sunday – as we remember the story of the Wise Men and their journey.

You remember the song, The Twelve Days of Christmas. 
I don’t know if you saw the newspaper article, but, obviously with the mergers and all, someone over at PNC Bank doesn’t have enough to do. 
Someone over there in the “wealth management department” has calculated the cost of one set of gifts – from the partridge in a pear tree to the 12 drummers drumming.   
If you were thinking of purchasing a set of gifts to send to your true love, it would set you back $24,263.18  this year.  (That’s up more than 3.5% from last year!)  

This year, each item in the PNC Internet Christmas Price Index is substantially higher due to increased shipping and handling costs.
The results of this year's survey indicate that the Seven Swans-a-Swimming, which typically provides the biggest swings from year to year in the PNC CPI, based on supply and demand, rose by 12.5 percent, almost double last year's rise of 6.7 percent, to $6,300. That was the biggest dollar increase this year, up $700, a 12.5 percent boost.

    Three French Hens, Eight Maids-a-Milking, Nine Ladies Dancing, and 10 Lords-a-Leaping were the same price as last year.

    The 11 Pipers Piping ($2,427.60) and 12 Drummers Drumming ($2,629.90) saw modest increases, both up 3.0 percent.

And, if you were wondering, if you were to purchase all of the gifts mentioned in the song: 12 partridges in pear trees, etc, the true cost of Christmas comes out to a rather staggering $101,119 and 84 cents, to be precise..  
Clearly, someone over at PNC has too much time on their hands, wouldn’t you say?

I have an old PEANUTS cartoon in which Lucy is in the outfield playing a baseball game.
Of course, Charlie Brown is on the mound pitching. Lucy calls out to him, "Hey, Manager! Ask your catcher if he still loves me!"
Charlie Brown interrupts his pitching and says to the catcher, "She wants to know if you still love her."
Then, in the next frame, he turns to Lucy and yells to Lucy, "He says, No!'"
Then Lucy wants to know why not.
He relays the information to Lucy again: "He says there are so many reasons he can't remember them all."

This upsets Lucy, and she responds, "Really? That's very depressing."
Finally, Charlie Brown, exasperated, cries out, "Do you mind if we get on with the game?"
Lucy's response is, "Game? What game?"
"The baseball game!" shouts Charlie Brown, to which Lucy responds, "Oh, that's right. I was wondering why I was standing out here." (1)


The beginning of a new year is a good time for reminding ourselves why we are "standing out here."
Another year gone, another year begun.
The questions are the same”
What are we to do now?
What is our purpose?
Why are we here?

Some people seem to dread a new year. 
Maybe you are one of them.
I heard one guy say "The holidays aren't quite over and already I'm about 90 days ahead on my calories and 90 days behind on my bills."
Some of you can identify with him.

Now, we know that our calendar was established by human minds.
There is no real reason why one day on the calendar should bear more significance than any other day of the year.
Yet, still we invest the changing of the year with a great deal of meaning, don’t we?
It is a time of hope,
It is a time of planning,
It is a time of vision-casting,
And, of course, it is a time for resolutions.
Ready or not, it is time to set yourself on a course of self-improvement.
  
One pastor suggests that our life would be better if we 7-UPS FOR THE NEW YEAR.
If you and I would concentrate on 7-UPS during the days to come, things would change for us, guaranteed.
First, each day,  WAKE UP – Begin the day the affirmation that this is the Lord’s Day – Rejoice in it.
Second, each day,  DRESS-UP – Put on a smile. It improves your looks. It says something about your attitude.
Thirdly, SHUT-UP – Watch your tongue. Don't gossip. Say nice things. Learn to listen.
Fourthly,  STAND-UP – Take a stand for what you believe. Resist  evil. Do good.
Fifthly, LOOK-UP – Open your eyes to the presence of God in our lives.  Emmanuel.  Clues are all around us, if we only look.    
Sixthly, REACH-UP – Spend time in prayer with your adorations, confessions, thanksgivings and supplications to the Lord.
And finally, LIFT-UP – Be available to help those in need – serving, supporting, and sharing.

     If you're going to make new year's resolutions this year, let me suggest the 7UPS.

     Why do you think we bother to make New Year's resolutions in the first place?
Why do we feel this need each January 1 to set new goals?
Maybe it is because resolutions help us to identify our priorities.
They answer the Question: how do I want to invest my time, energy, money, and talents in this new year?
The new year reminds us that time is passing.
It is up to each of us to maximize the potential of every moment.

     Someone wrote some thought-provoking words on the meaning of time:
To realize the value of "one month" ask a mother who gave birth to a premature baby.
To realize the value of "one week" ask the editor of a weekly newspaper.
To realize the value of "one hour," ask the lovers who are waiting to meet.
To realize the value of "one minute," ask the person who missed the train.
To realize the value of "one second," ask the person who just avoided an accident.
To realize the value of "one millisecond," ask the person who won a silver medal in the Olympics.

The coming of the new year forces us to face the question: what will be my priorities this year?

It’s good that we are here on the first day of the new year.
Each year at this time as we look back on the days of the year past, we are reminded that life is made up of seasons – times for this and times for that.
Stuff happens. 
Some bad.  Some good.
Some that overwhelm our emotions.
Some that bring us elation and joy.
And, if we are able to analyze ourselves, who we are at the end of 2011 is shaped in large part by how we reacted to the events of the days past.

You may know that New Year’s day was not always celebrated on January 1.  
In fact, much of the world still does not celebrate New Years on January 1.
The Chinese and Vietnamese celebrate the new year according to a different astronomical calendar that begins on a day between January 21 and February 21.
Several nations in Southeast Asia celebrate New Years in April.
The Jewish people celebrate the beginning of the new year in the Fall – usually in September.
Even among Christian people, the Eastern Orthodox Church celebrates New Year on January 14 of our calendar. 

In fact, we can thank the Roman Empire for standardizing the universal calendar so everyone no matter where you lived could agree on what day it was.
Originally, the roman calendar had only ten months, and New Year’s day was March 1.
When they added two months to the calendar they placed the two months at the beginning of the year – instead of at the end – and that’s how January 1 got to be the first day of the new year for all touched by the Roman Empire – and for us.  

As soon as they did that, they named the first month of the year January after the Roman god, Janus.
Everyone already knew this Janus because her distinction was that she had two heads and two pairs of eyes.
Each head faced in the opposite direction from the other and each pair of eyes looked in the opposite direction from the other –
so, she could see what lies in the past and what is to come –
what has been and what will be.

And, so from the beginning, almost, this time of year for most folks has been a time of looking back at the old year,
taking stock of the events that led up to where we are and of our situation,
and looking ahead with certain resolve to make correct the course, if necessary, to make any changes needed to have more positive outcomes in the days ahead.

By chance, has anyone here been in Rome on New Year's Eve? 
Well, sources tell me that the celebrations there are unlike anything you and I might have experienced last night.
The celebrations there begin at noon on December 31 with a booming cannon and a mounting crescendo of noisemakers.
As night comes on, bright tracer flashes cut across the sky and, finally, at midnight, the cheers go up and there is lots of hugging and kissing and dancing in the streets. But that's not all ...

The Romans think that New Year's Eve is an appropriate time to rid themselves of the old and take on the new, not just symbolically, but actually, by throwing out their windows old or worn-out things –  a torn dress, a frayed suit,
a pair of socks with holes in the toes,
a cracked dish, a broken-down chair, and so on.

Visitors are warned, quite seriously, to stay in their hotel rooms to avoid being hit by one of these flying objects during "Throw Away Time."

What a great idea! 
Maybe you and I should resolve this New Year's Day to adopt a "Throw Away Time" for the disposal of old, tired, depressing, fearful, gloomy thoughts and attitudes.
A good resolution might be to establish a nightly ritual of deliberate thought-emptying in order to put our minds and hearts in good working-order for the coming day.
We could summon up all the jealousies, over-anxieties, hostilities and feelings of depression of the previous twenty-four hours and visualize them being thrown out of the window of our consciousness.

For me, Ralph Waldo Emerson spoke basic truth when he wrote:
Write it on your heart that every day is the best day of the year.
He [or she] is rich who owns the day,
and no one owns the day who allows it to be invaded with fret and anxiety.
Finish every day and be done with it.
Some blunders and absurdities no doubt crept in.
Forget them as soon as you can;
tomorrow is a new day;
begin it well and serenely,
with too high a spirit to te encumbered with your old nonsense.
The new day is too dear, with its hopes and invitations,
to waste a moment on the yesterdays.

What a great thought for the new year, don’t you think?
It couldn’t be more biblical.
We read in the Psalms:
This is the day the Lord has made,
rejoice and be glad in it.
That’s how we begin our services nearly every Sunday.
If you do not already do so, I suggest that you resolve to begin each day of the new year with this greeting. 
As many others can attest to, this resolution can literally change your life!

Seeing each day as a clean slate, we are free for new hopes, new invitations, new chances.
Begin it well and serenely, Emerson charges.
Our yesterdays are history.
We are not well served by anxiety and fret and remorse and guilt.
Don’t waste a moment on the yesterdays! . . .
Forget them as soon as you can! . . .
Finish each day and be done with it!

Richness and wealth and the good life, ultimately are not measured in monetary units.
Accumulations of things and annuities and stocks provide for little security in God’s economy.

No, richness and wealth and the good life, are by-products of owning the day.
That is, recognizing it for what it is: a gift from God.
Paying homage for the day helps the soul focus on what is really important – and what is not.

The Psalmist reminds us that each of our days are God-given. 
What we do with them is up to us.
How we spend them is up to us.
How we get through them is up to us.
And it makes a difference.

Frets and anxieties and regrets have a way of festering and infecting our lives with unhealthiness.
Misplaced allegiances and unrecognized debts foster unhappiness, unpleasantness, and,
ultimately, an unfulfilled life.

So, today, at the beginning of this new year,
write it on your heart that every day is the best day of the year!

Our Scripture tells us that every day we have a chance to encounter Emmanuel. 
And we are given specific instructions how – and where – and when.
Brothers and Sisters in Christ, pay attention,
heed the clues,
and every day in this new year can be a holy day for you.  Amen.

The Congregation of Christ Presbyterian Church in Drexel Hill, Pennsylvania, USA, experienced this sermon during a worship service, during Christmastide, January 1, 2012.

The Birth of Jesus and The Gospel of John

Dwelling on establishing the specialness of Jesus with stories of his birth was not important to [the earliest believers].
What was important, was how their faith in this radical new religion based on Emmanuel –
based upon the Incarnation –
based on God now being with us instead of dwelling from on high –
how life based on this new faith fits into the cosmic scheme of things –
and how it is different from the old ways of doing.

 Isaiah 52:7-10
John 1:1-14

So, for us in the church, this is the Fourth Sunday of Advent – a time for us to contemplate why we celebrate Christmas anyway.

Again, this year, during these weeks before Christmas, we have been looking at the very earliest documents we have to ascertain just how those earliest Christians celebrated Christmas –
hoping to find clues as to how we might have a better understanding and actually experience a better Christmas this year.

The first week of Advent, we looked at the very earliest writings we have –
the letters of Paul and some of the writings that were found in the Dead Sea Scrolls and Nag Hammurabi and other places in the desert country of Egypt and Syria and Palestine,
and the very earliest Gospel in our Bible:
the Gospel of Mark – which was published around the year 70.

We actually have several texts now that were published during these early  years – during the first 75 years or so after Jesus was killed.
And, look as we may, it is obvious that none of these texts say anything at all about the birth of Jesus. 
It just was not important to those earliest believers.

Yes, Jesus was a pivotal figure in their history,
yes, Jesus was a pivotal figure in their faith,
yes, Jesus was a pivotal figure in their life experience –
in their understanding of who they were and what they to do.
Clearly, they each articulate a faith that in Jesus, they saw God incarnate – God in the flesh –
for them,  Jesus was Emmanuel – God with us.

The second week we looked at the second Gospel of Matthew, published some 15 years after Mark, and intended for a somewhat different audience.
Matthew begins his Gospel with a detailed genealogy setting Jesus firmly in the Jewish camp – a descendent of King David,
and even Father Abraham, himself.

In the 15 years between Mark and Matthew an interest in birth stories had developed.
Matthew’s community wanted to believe that their Jesus was no less a god than the mighty Caesar or any of the other gods they encountered among the cosmopolitan culture of the Roman Empire.
Every other god had a miraculous birth story to show their specialness, so, Jesus should have one, too.

The Gospel of Luke is the third Gospel of the collection in our Bible.
It was published some 15 years after Matthew.
And, again, it was intended for a different audience than Mark or Matthew.

Again, we are reminded that during these early years, indeed, for the first 100 to 150 years, there was no separate Christian church.
There were Jews who believed that Jesus was the Messiah and revered as Emmanuel – God with Us – and they would meet as small groups –
sometimes even sharing meals and resources and living arrangements –
but, when they worshiped, they went to the Temple.

We see Luke being addressed primarily to a predominately gentile audience to show that belief in Jesus in Emmanuel conflicted in no way with their ability to serve as good citizens of the Roman Empire.

And, we see that each of the Gospels have a very different starting place.
Matthew starts very differently than Mark does – again with that long genealogy.
And Luke starts differently than either Mark or Matthew does with that miraculous birth story – not of Jesus, but of John.

And, here in the Gospel of John, we have an even stranger beginning.

Most scholars agree now that this Gospel of John was published no earlier than 110 years after the death of Jesus.
Clearly this Gospel was addressed to people under stress –
there was a conflict between the communities of believers in Jesus as Messiah
and the communities of believers in John as Messiah;
and there was a widening rift between these communities of Jesus believers
and the other believers of Judaism.
The break that we know today was occurring by the time John was published.
And this Gospel is written in that context.

Again, dwelling on establishing the specialness of Jesus with stories of his birth was not important to these people.
What was important, was how their faith in this radical new religion based on Emmanuel –
based upon the Incarnation –
based on God now being with us instead of dwelling from on high –
how life based on this new faith fits into the cosmic scheme of things –
and how it is different from the old ways of doing.

Curiously, we know from the writings of a Jewish Greek philosopher from Alexandria, Philo, that this concept of God as the Doer, the Speaker, the One who Acts, the Word
was emerging in Alexandria some 50 years before the Gospel of John was published.

Here, Jesus is remembered not primarily as a specific man at a specific time in history, but
as the embodiment of a wisdom, a sophia, that pervades all things and all people.

The Word has existed from the beginning, and the Word came and dwelt among people, “they knew him not.”

Here, John tells the story in a radically new way.

Jesus is identified with the Logos – the Word of God –   and becomes something other than a man from Nazareth born of flesh and blood –
but nothing less than a construct of God –
a part of the Almighty himself –
a very part of the cosmos itself.

Like I concluded last week,
I think it is important for us to ask why each of the Gospels treat the birth of Jesus differently.
And to remember that the story that you and I have learned and could tell on a moments notice, actually does not occur in any of our gospels.

The story you and I learned,
and the story you and I tell,
is really a composite of the stories we see in the Gospels.
We tend to take a part from one and combine it with a part from another and a part from another, and, lo, we have our story.

But, if we actually did what those early Christians did, we wouldn’t revere any of the details of any of these stories;
but, we would come up with our own story –
like they did.
A story that begins with an experience with Emmanuel –
an experience of God being with us –
and then coming up with an explanation as to how special that experience is.

For you and me to fully understand and celebrate Christmas, we have to seek out and identify times of Emmanuel for us:
times we have been in the presence of God,
times we when we have been absolutely convinced that God is with us.

And, so we say Where or where is Emmanuel today?
And we are on the lookout for signs of Emmanuel in our times:
for some, like the shepherds in Luke’s Gospel, it is in celestial music;
for some, it will be in coming to the Lord’s table as we do today;
for some, it will be in helping feed the hungry at the food closet;
for some, it will be in sharing special time with loved ones;
however and whenever and wherever;
this Christmas will be the best you have ever had when you open yourself to the presence of Emmanuel and recognize God with us.

Amen.

The congregation of Christ Presbyterian Church in Dexel Hill, Pennsylvania, USA, heard this sermon on the Fourth Sunday of Advent, December 18, 2011.