Homily
by The Rev. Marcia McRae
St.
John’s Episcopal Church, Bainbridge, GA
27
Dec. 2015,
Christmas 1 Year C:
Isaiah 61:10-62:3; Psalm
147; Galatians 3:23-25; 4:4-7; John 1:1-18
My
husband's conversion experience right after Thanksgiving opened the
way for me to give him a very special gift this Christmas.
Before
his profound change, I could never have given him this mug. It says: "I love my cat."
At Thanksgiving, he rescued our neighbors from a cat & brought it into our house. After
years of his putting up with cats we had & years enjoying
cat-free living, he has converted into a cat person. [I
have photos to prove it.]
What
does the cat have to do with our scriptures?
Notice: our scriptures
speak of changes – how we live, from imprisonment to freedom, a
new, close relationship with God, change of status, change of
perspective. The cat has brought many changes in how we live, our
perspectives, & has added a new relationship. Her life has gained
freedom since her rescue.
Our
lesson from Isaiah,
as
one Bible commentary says1,
is
a Song of Thanksgiving for public celebration of divine rescue.
Notice it says “you shall be called by a new name”. Remember: In
the Bible, names matter. Names reveal one's essence. A name change
signifies a new direction in life. Think
of the Apostle Paul's name change.
The
2 verses after our lesson in Isaiah [62:4-5]
say:
You
shall no more be termed Forsaken...you shall be called My Delight Is
in Her... for the Lord delights in you...as the bridegroom rejoices
over the bride,
so shall your God rejoice over you.”
Our
Psalm echoes this rejoicing in its praise & presentation of God
as healer of personal sorrows,
as
one commentary says, adding2...God
cares. God is compassionate. We know this through Jesus' being born
as a human, dying for us on the hard wood of the cross, rising from
the dead & sending the Holy Spirit to guide us. In short:
Christ's
Actions
Transform.
The word “cat” can help us to remember: Christ's
Actions
Transform.
Paul
reminds the Galatians & us of Christ's transforming actions in
our 2nd
lesson today. The Gospel supersedes the law. God's love overflows.
God loves you. No exceptions. All are welcome. To become God's
adopted child, we only have to accept God's open invitation to new
life. Then we shine God's Light in the darkness. Like John in our
Gospel, we testify to the Light.
When
we pray, “Our Father,” we claim our status in God's family. This
status transforms our lives & gives us work to do, carrying on
the actions of Jesus, the Word which became flesh & lived among
us.
What
do we in the 21st
Century miss when we hear: “the Word became flesh & lived among
us”?
Early hearers, as
more
than one commentator3
note,
would know the Greek word translated “lived” refers to living in
tents, as the people did in their travels with Moses, carrying the
Ark of the Covenant & housing it in a tent. We could phrase
today's Gospel to say:
The Word became flesh & pitched a tent
[among] us.”4
Jesus
pitches his tent among us
to end our BIG
separation
from God. Jesus “'pitched his tent' in a stable...a highly
undesirable & unclean space...Dirty
shepherds & even animals got to share Jesus’ first...moments.
The mundane & profane people & circumstances...[that society
excluded] were the exact people & circumstances included &
recognized as Holy in the presence of Christ.”5
Christ's
Actions Transform.
Christ's
actions help us see the Holy in daily life. Remember: we have
received the gift of Jesus from God the Father. The gift of Jesus
keeps giving all year & throughout our lives. The gift of Christ
transforms us day by day.
Our
day-by-day transformation helps us approach our work, our lives
differently.6
Members of the Daughters of the King strive to be aware of this. Our
mission is the extension of Christ's Kingdom through Prayer, Service
& Evangelism7.
[One
example of our prayers is this chapter's gift of praying daily by
name for a year for those who mourn. An example of service has been
leading Stations of the Cross in Lent. Our evangelism is especially
among women & girls; notice: DOK members started our work with
Girl Scouts.]
Christ's
Actions
DO Transform.
DOK's
Vision Statement says:
“Empowered
by the Holy Spirit, our vision as Daughters of the King is to know
Jesus Christ, to make Him known to others, & become reflections
of God's love throughout the world.”8 [In
other words: Christ's
Actions
Transform.]
Regularly,
when we are together & individually, we say our motto, which I
consider a prayer, that helps us live as agents of Christ's Actions
that Transform.
“For
His Sake...
“I
am but one, but I am one.
“I
cannot do everything, but I can do something.
“What
I can do, I ought to do.
“What
I ought to do, by the grace of God I will do.
“Lord,
what will you have me do?”9
Lord,
what will you have me do?
Bibliography
The
American College Dictionary.
Ed. in Chief: C.L. Barnhart. New York: Random House, Inc. 1966.
Harper’s
Bible Commentary.
General Ed.: James. L. Mays. San Francisco: Harper & Row
Publishers, 1988.
Holy
Bible with the Apocrypha.
New Revised Standard Version. New York: Oxford University Press.
1989.
“Is
Christmas Really Over?”
http://www.sermons4kids.com/is_christmas_over.htm
Accessed: 26 Dec. 2015.
Johnson,
The Rev. Edwin. “Confusing The Sacred & The Profane, Christmas
1(C) – 2015”. Accessed: 26 Dec. 2015.
http://episcopaldigitalnetwork.com/stw/2015/12/09/confusing-the-sacred-the-profane-christmas-1c-2015/.
The
National Handbook and ByLaws of The Order of the Daughters of the
King.
2005 Ed. Woodstock, GA: The Order of the Daughters of the King, Inc.
2
Ibid. P. 493.
3
Johnson,
The Rev. Edwin. “Confusing
The Sacred & The Profane, Christmas 1(C) – 2015”. Accessed:
26 Dec. 2015.
http://episcopaldigitalnetwork.com/stw/2015/12/09/confusing-the-sacred-the-profane-christmas-1c-2015/.
4
Ibid. Johnson.
5
Ibid.
6
Ibid.
8
Ibid. DOK.
9
Ibid. P. 2.
No comments:
Post a Comment