Sermon: Do Not Be Afraid

Date Preached: Sunday 13th January 2010

It’s great to be in this Epiphany season – and (if I missed you last week) a very happy new year to you. Although the Christmas decorations (for most people anyway) have now been put away, as Christians we continue celebrating the joy of Jesus’ coming. I picked up this letter from the Times newspaper in early January a couple of years ago to encourage those who might not have got ‘round to it yet (& you can imagine the tone of voice - from ‘outraged of Peckham’)

Sir, Why… have all the television stations taken down their Christmas decorations? Even the pagans kept their trees in the house for the first 12 days of Christmas, in case the spirit of the tree invaded the building [!!]. Many of us Christians keep our trees up for the full 40 days of the festival, which lasts until Candlemas…most people have been swept up with the frenzied and chaotic Xmas thing, which generates chaos instead of peace, and greed rather than giving, and so are tired of decorations that were put up far too early. I’m continuing to enjoy Christmas and … celebrating Epiphany”

Epiphany – it’s a Christian festival that originated in the East actually in honour of Jesus’ baptism – and then in the West from the fourth century where it became associated with the manifestation of Christ to the first Gentiles to worship him – the Magi, the Wise Men.

So let’s slow down and take stock for a moment (not that we can do anything different in this weather!). We have these two biblical events to guide our worship and thinking at this time of year. The actual word “Epiphany” (I’m sure you know) – derives from the Greek for ‘manifestation’ – or revealing – and revealing what? Well it’s the light of Christ that has come into the world. So we light our candles as a symbol of the light of the world – God incarnate – in the flesh -  revealing himself, coming amongst us in Jesus Christ.  I love the fact that we have a faith that’s ‘enfleshed’ – that God somehow sacralizes and makes special our physical, material, flesh-and-blood existence by clothing himself in our humanity.

We begin a new year that once again will probably bring with it events that will turn out to be like nothing we’ve ever witnessed before in human history. And I think the season of Epiphany creates a real challenge for us. Do we believe God is at work in the world he created? Do we believe he has really shown what he’s like in his Son Jesus Christ? (because, as I say, Epiphany is all about what’s been "shown" - "made known" - "revealed." – “disclosed”).  Do we believe God has something special to reveal through us as a community this year?  Do we believe he wants us personally – you & me - to respond to his call of love, and to be involved in the work of his Kingdom. It’s ever so easy to sit back complacently and watch the familiar pass by; to let others do it – but the solitary, individual, ‘vicar-will-do-it-it’s-his-job’ model isn’t going to have much of an impact, (and thankfully that’s not the predominant idea in this place – although it remains so still for some). 

John’s a good reference point – one who is seeking to prepare the way for the coming king. And what he had to say was simple – no fuss or ostentation; no cleverness or manipulation – no carefully constructed message from an overblown and overpaid marketing company – his was a ‘strapline’ straight from the hip: Repent for the kingdom of heaven has come near. Change your ways, turn ‘round –if you’ve been going in one direction, shift ‘round and start ravelling another

Everything ‘appeared fine’ on the surface. Israel – the people of God – had a new temple; they’d established worship services; their religious leaders were at least in control of local politics. Yet John has the temerity to rebuke them for having a shallow religion – even calling the top religious leaders ‘nominal’ Jews which was a real insult.  What he was saying was that while their Judaism might have looked good it wasn't really useful for anything – it wasn’t making the world a fit place for the king to come.

And so he continues saying, “Get ready! – not for me, by the way I’m not the One - the King is coming”. And all four gospels are agreed that what we celebrate today, Jesus’ baptism, is the moment of confirmation – when God declares his love for Jesus. The reading tells us the people were ’filled with expectation’ – and for good reason:

The Jewish nation had experienced over 400 years of comparative silence. God had always spoken to his people through his prophets, but now the prophetic voice of God was silent.

So John’s purpose as a prophet was to compel the necessary change – the rebuilding of the people's lives so that God himself could come to them. 

And as I say it was a simple message: “if the King is to come more deeply into your heart, make sure the road is smoothed out!” Then, as now, John was pitching his message into a time of crisis. Apparently there are two Chinese symbols making up the word crisis – one that signifies danger; but the other opportunity. Would they accept the king into their lives? Would they reject him in favour of the comfortable status quo? Would they say yes?!

Because that’s what Jesus said to his Father in being willing to be baptised – and what is so moving is that all this happens before Jesus embarks upon the painful and costly path that will lead to a cross. (We need to get this) the love of the Father is not just because of what the Son does, but because of who he is. It’s quite obvious that at this critical moment, with everyone watching what he’d do - and then over and over again - Jesus chose what Henri Nouwen calls ‘the descending way’ – the downward direction – a smelly stable and now a muddy river chosen as the place where God was to appear – this was an epiphany – the way of hiddenness – a descending way. He came to us - and comes to us - in a manner no-one would have imagined. No earthquakes, no sun falling out of the sky: only a tiny son born into unceremonious surroundings, in a seedy part of a provincial Middle-Eastern town – and now joining the ranks of sinners who were being baptized by John in the Jordan river. And then all the many miracles that always seemed to express his profound compassion for suffering humanity – never attempts to call attention to himself. As a rule he even instructed those he’s cured not to talk to others about it. And as his life continued, Jesus’ increasing realization that he’d been called to fulfil his vocation in the worst kind of suffering and death. 

Do you remember that bit later on in Luke’s gospel, where Jesus announces what he’s about in the local Saturday morning synagogue service:

The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he has anointed me to bring good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim release to the captives and recovery of sight to the blind, to let the oppressed go free, to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favour (Lk 4:18-19)

I wonder if we really get how radical, how explosive  a claim this all is?

Perhaps we have said some kind of provisional ‘yes’ to God’s grand rescue scheme – where we’re brought back into a relationship with God – where we have some idea that we’ve been forgiven and restored. Perhaps we’ve followed up the promises made in our baptisms about following him as his disciples and living accordingly. But more importantly God invites us to say ‘yes’ to the coming of his kingdom – his reign and  his rule in our daily lives, in the place of all our fretting about doing it our way and getting what we want; this is where saying ‘yes’ to God is so hard because it means us letting go of the reins.

Jesus’s YES to humble birth and baptism implied saying “No” to other ways of doing things. So much in my life, if I’m honest (looking back), has been about seeking influence, power, success, kudos - and popularity. But this baptismal way of Jesus is the way of “hiddenness”, powerlessness and littleness. It doesn’t seem a very appealing way in today’s celebrity culture, does it? Yet when we enter into true, deep communion with Jesus we find that it is this small way that leads to real peace and joy – real life – as we allow his Spirit to make his home in us. I’d love this to be a year when you hear God speaking – personally – as Jesus heard him: hearing him say as he did to Jesus that he loves us – that he’s pleased with us. We’re created by God, Isaiah says, for his glory, and that is why he chooses to redeem us. Not because we’re worthy but because, inexplicably, he loves us. So try and hear the intimacy of promises like Isaiah 43 for yourself. (10.00: We’re going to sing these verses (#111 – Do not be afraid)

“This is what the Lord says – he who created you Jacob; he who formed you Israel: Do not fear, for I have redeemed you; I have called you by name, you are mine. For I am the Lord your God, the Holy One of Israel, your Saviour…Because you are precious in my sight and honoured and I love you I give people in return for you, nations in exchange for your life.