The reading
Matthew 2:1-12
In the time of King Herod, after Jesus was born in Bethlehem
of Judea, wise men[a] from the East came to Jerusalem, asking, “Where is the
child who has been born king of the Jews? For we observed his star at its
rising, and have come to pay him homage.” When King Herod heard this, he was
frightened, and all Jerusalem with him;
and calling together all the chief priests and scribes of the people, he
inquired of them where the Messiah was to be born. They told him, “In Bethlehem of Judea; for so
it has been written by the prophet:
‘And you, Bethlehem, in the land of Judah,
are by no means
least among the rulers of Judah;
for from you shall come a ruler
who is to shepherd
my people Israel.’
Then Herod secretly called for the wise men and learned from
them the exact time when the star had appeared. Then he sent them to Bethlehem,
saying, “Go and search diligently for the child; and when you have found him,
bring me word so that I may also go and pay him homage.” When they had heard the king, they set out;
and there, ahead of them, went the star that they had seen at its rising, until
it stopped over the place where the child was.
When they saw that the star had stopped, they were overwhelmed with joy.
On entering the house, they saw the child with Mary his mother; and they knelt
down and paid him homage. Then, opening their treasure chests, they offered him
gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh.
And having been warned in a dream not to return to Herod, they left for
their own country by another road.
The message
We are a little early for the celebration of the Epiphany or
Three Kings, which is traditionally January 6 (or the closest Sunday). Since we
have started to follow the narrative lectionary, we are journeying through the
scripture in chronological or time order.
The arrival of these visitors to see the infant Jesus, is the next
significant thing that happens after Jesus birth. At the heart of this story is
the meaning of the gifts given by these three kings, wise men, astronomers, or
magi Honestly, no one is quite sure who or what they were. People are not even
sure if there was in fact three. People have historically assumed there were
three since there were 3 gifts. We do
not know if others traveled with them and simply said “hey, let me get in on
the gold with you” or “can you put my name on the card with the myrrh, I’ll pay
you later”. The meaning of the gifts is
pretty clear. Gold, an always valuable
commodity throughout human history, to represent Jesus royalty and kingship,
Frankinsence, a type of incense used for worship to represent Jesus divinity
and myrrh, a perfume used in anointing the dead, to represent that Jesus will
die and rise again for the forgiveness of our sins. With these gifts, the foreign visitors announce just who exactly it
was born on Christmas, God with us, the king of kings, the savior who will give
his life for ours.
This text has a deep meaning for me, in how I understand our
ministry and time here at St Jacobus. I
expected a small crowd today (I was surprised by how many people came to church though) so I will also share most of this in the January
newsletter. For me, this story focuses on an often
overlooked character. The star that points to Christ. The visitors follow the
star. It points them to Christ, leading them on a long, strange trip through
all different environments, cultures and communities. Once the visitors arrive, that star
disappears, it goes back to being just a regular star amongst the countless
billions in the night sky, it no longer marks where Jesus is, it no longer
points to Christ.
Today, we take on the responsibility and work of the star,
we point to Christ, the center and heart of this place, the reason, not only
for the season, but for life.
What does pointing to Christ looks like?
For us, we are at the end of an exciting year. Our food pantry continues to grow, serve more
people and include other volunteers, churches and communities. We have completed a series of much needed
captial improvements. The new playground is almost done, the roof over the office and
kitchen is complete, there is new carpet in this space, and in a few days, the
work of repairing and refinishing the pews will start. We continue to own and
be responsible for a school that serves over 150 families with quality early
education and faith. We may only have 2 or 3 children on Sunday mornings but on
Fridays, we have church services with 60 or 70 children from 3 to 7 years old. We
have a vision for the future of this place and a relationship that is improving
every month. Under Drew’s deeply
faithful and committed leadership and because of so many dedicated members, we
have a great music program. When I first
arrived here a little more than 6 years ago, everyone said there was something
special about this community. That has proven true time and time again and that
has endured challenges, obstacles and losses with hope and faith. The most amazing thing about this year is the
way that the members of this church have cared for those of us who were sick,
suffering and recovering, That is what pointing to Christ looks like for
us. There is work to be done, whatever
is holding us back, whether its being shy, quiet, uncomfortable, or uncertain, we
need to get over it and we need to share God’s love with more people. We have something special here, a meaning,
faith and community people are desperate for in today’s meaningless world, we
need to show and tell people an alternative to fear, greed and anxiety is here.
The fujianase, South Asian, Indonesian, Filipino, Hispanic,
Bengali and other churches that worship
or hold events here, they share in the work of the star, pointing people of all
different languages and cultures to Christ.
They make the star burn hotter and shine brighter. During your average
week, over 600 people worship here at St Jacobus, This number is spread out
over our school and the churches that share the space with us. That is larger than this church has ever been.
They are empowering their young adults, teaching full Sunday school classrooms,
helping with immigration struggles and organizing community events. The things
that we are still trying to get together.
There is a lot of stress, anxiety and complicated things that come with
the management of this place. As much as I hate to say this, I am not an administrative
and time management wizard. This works because of the understanding,
cooperation and faith based help of our brothers and sisters in Christ. I admit things could be neater and cleaner,
we will get there as time goes on.
It is not just churches doing the work of the star here. The
12 step groups, AA and CA who meet her, gather every week to walk together and
provide one another with support, comfort and help as they face addiction and
recovery. Coach Pablo, who runs the
winter Soccer program has a real vision for the role of sports in changing the
world and making things better. His
program teaching sports skills but also stresses academic achievement,
community and dedication. He recently
torn his ACL and has used this horrible, painful injury to show the hundreds of
young people in his program that you can recover and heal but you need the help
and prayers of others.
When you are part of this, you experience a glimpse of how
wide God’s story is, how many ways God’s amazing Grace can be shared. You work
together in new ways, share new ideas, and you encounter people you would have
never met otherwise. You also meet
surprising moments of grace. For me, one
happened last week. Mary, the crossing Guard at PS 12, called me over one
morning, sort of upset. She let me know that
she received a 50 dollar Amazon gift card as a Chrismas present from one of the
school families. She said it was too much. She did not deserve it. They shouldn’t have given her so much money.
She half-jokingly said, there should be a Christmas message in that. There was, Christmas is a time when God is not
fair, God gives us way more than we deserve.
I look forward to another year of being the star that points to Christ.
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