Matthew 2:1-12&n=
bsp; =
; &n=
bsp; =
; &n=
bsp; =
; “The
Journey to
This past year as mos=
t of you
know,
I had the incredible
opportunity to make a pilgrimage to
Of the many places we
visited, one of the most memorable was
I’m not sure wh=
at my
expectations were of the place where Jesus was born.
I wasn’t lookin=
g for
the star in the east,
b=
ut I suppose I expected some sense of the holy.
Instead, as we drove =
on our
bus the six miles from
w=
hat came into view was the 26 foot high concrete wa=
ll
that surrounds
The Israeli governmen=
t built
this wall in 2002 to keep suicide bombers -
a=
nd ordinary Palestinian citizens - out of the rest=
of
(I brought a few pict=
ures
that shows some of this -
To enter the city, we=
had to
drive through a checkpoint
g=
uarded by armed Israeli soldiers. (
As we drove through t=
he gate
in the wall,
w=
hat stood out was the graffiti scribbled all over i=
nside
the wall. (
(“From the ashe=
s of our
hopelessness spring the flames of our hope”
A=
picture
of a dove wearing a flak jacket.
A long spray-painted =
snake,
gliding toward the checkpoint entrance on the wall.
There were some I took
pictures of, which I can show you in a couple of slides.
A forest of tree stum=
ps, cut
off at the root.
A=
couple of
doves, one holding an olive branch.
A=
Christmas
tree, symbol of
In symbols, this urban art gave a glimpse
of the realities and the risks of li=
fe
inside the walls.
But it wasn’t u=
ntil we
were leaving the city later in the day,
t=
hat I really understood the risks that Palestinians=
must
go thru
e=
very time they wish to leave this city -
t=
o work in
I heard stories from =
people
who suffered directly from this situation.=
The owner of a restau=
rant in
w=
hen his entry into
To get out of
w= e were required to get off the bus and walk thru<= o:p>
a=
n elaborate airport type security system.
As we began to take o=
ff
shoes, empty pockets, hold out our passports, etc.
s=
uddenly they realized we were a group of American touri=
sts,
and they let us through. But =
the
experience taught me something
a=
bout the realities and the risks of modern life in <=
st1:place
w:st=3D"on">
Risks and realities w=
hich are
particularly relevant this week,
a=
s once again violence flares up in the
w=
hich is another troubled area in this region, cutoff=
like
Today’s scripture reading is about another
journey to
in a different time, and under diffe=
rent
circumstances.
But this journey 2000 years ago had its own risk=
s and
realities when the Magi journeyed to see the child born the king of the
Jews.
That’s where the
trouble begins in today’s reading from Matthew’s gospel.
Over the centuries, w=
e have
called these visitors to
k=
ings, magi, wise men.
It is unlikely they w=
ere
actually kings,
a=
lthough clearly King Herod was threatened by their
appearance.
The actual translatio=
n from
the Greek is magi, which means wise men,
p=
robably a priestly class of Persians or Babylonians
w=
ho were experts in the interpretation of stars and
dreams.
Although tradition sa=
ys there
were three,
i=
f you read this text there is no mention of a num=
ber of
magi,
o=
nly that they brought with them three gifts: gold, frankincense, and myrrh.
Traditional Christian interpretation sees these gifts
as a foreshadowing of=
the
life of Jesus:
gold for royalty,
frankincense for his priestly role; and myrrh pointing to Jesus’
death.
But even more importa=
nt than
the gifts
was the fact that the=
se wise
men “knelt down and paid him homage.”
They worshiped the ba=
by
king.
We sometimes romantic=
ize this
story from Matthew’s gospel, but when we do,
we overlook its frigh=
tening
risks and realities.
Herod is in power in =
this
part of the world, given his authority by the
He is known for massi=
ve
building projects in
including the buildin=
g of the
second temple.
He is also known for =
his
murderous acts, for he is a cruel and much-feared ruler.
When foreign visitors=
tell
him there is a new king in his kingdom,
he believes his power=
is
threatened,
although he would, of=
course,
have no idea just what a threat to worldly power
this King of the Jews=
would
one day be.
Although we didn̵=
7;t read
this part today,
as the story continue=
s in
chapter 2 of Matthew’s gospel, the danger increases.
Immediately following=
the
visit of the wise men,
Joseph is told in a d=
ream to
flee with Mary and Jesus to
Meanwhile, the wise m=
en are
warned in a dream to not return to Herod.
Herod, enraged that h=
e has
been tricked by the wise men,
orders the massacre o=
f all
babies in and around
But in these first ve=
rses of
chapter 2 of Matthew’s gospel, there is still innocence.
A baby in
Wise men single-minde=
dly
following a star.
Precious gifts brough=
t to the
child and his mother.
The story of the wise=
men who
come to worship Jesus
has come to be known =
as the
Epiphany,
a word which comes fr=
om a
Greek word meaning to manifest or to show.=
In this tiny baby bor=
n in
God had revealed hims=
elf in
human form to wise men who had traveled from afar.
But there is more to =
this
epiphany than meets the eye. =
In Luke’s Gospe=
l, God
reveals himself to shepherds - dirty outcasts.
In Matthew’s go=
spel,
God’s revelation is to foreign visitors - gentiles.
Pagans. Outsiders.
In both these gospels we hear the good news that=
God is not about to keep himself confined to a s=
mall
box,
revealing himself only to a select few.
In Matthew’s go=
spel,
which ends with the great commission
to go out and make di=
sciples
of all the nations,
here in the beginning=
of the
gospel,
we see the nations coming to worship the newborn king.
From the beginning of=
this
Gospel, we are to understand that the good news is for all.
But human nature being what it is, we sometimes forget we have this treasur=
e to
offer. The good news can get stuck
inside of our churches.
So today I am going t=
o tell
you about some churches that are operating outside the box.
There is a church in =
every Sunday since 19=
92.
Now that’s not =
so
unusual, but what is different is that they hold services outdoors under the
Interstate 35 overpass.
I looked the church u=
p online
- it’s called Church Under the Bridge -
and in addition to wo=
rship,
they serve a meal every Sunday.
Plus they have small
groups: a recovery group, a c=
ollege
group, a women’s group,
an ex-offenders group=
, a
parents group,
a bus group for the h=
omeless
folks that get a ride to the Sunday services.
There’s another=
church
that is meeting where the people are -
this one is in
The founder of the ch=
urch,
Pastor Will Horn, says it simply:
“Christ hung ou=
t in the
most unexpected places.”
The church is called =
the
and the power comes f=
rom
helping people come to know Christ. &=
nbsp;
The people who attend=
the
young and old, poor a=
nd rich,
gay and straight.
Some are homeless, so=
me are
in drug rehab programs.
Most have felt shut o=
ut of
other churches.
Pastor Horn tells the=
m at the
beginning of worship:
“There’s =
always
room at the table for you here. We
don’t ever run out of Jesus here.”
There’s still a=
nother
worship service in
on Sunday afternoons =
in
It’s a homeless
ministry of the Episcopal diocese of
called the Church of =
the
Common Ground and they meet at
a health clinic, reco=
very
meetings, and meals.
Bob Book is the curre=
nt
pastor there
and he says he doesn&=
#8217;t
want any walls in his church.
“Once you erect=
walls,
you start keeping people out
either by accident or
intentionally.”
Of course, this doesn=
’t
mean that every church
is called to open a s=
atellite
location under a bridge, in a bar, or at a park.
What it does mean, however, is that we need to b=
e open
to the unexpected places where God is leading us=
,
the unexpected persons we are called to welcome =
in the
name of Christ.
We can’t be content to just do church each
Sunday.
Fill the candles. Tur=
n on the
heat. Set out the communion trays. <=
/span>
Sing in the choir.
Be friendly on Sunday
mornings.
Although all of this =
has to
do with church, there’s more.
We can’t be content to just do church. We must BE the church.
We must stretch, reac=
h out
and be a beacon of light
for those who are liv=
ing in a
dark world.
We must take the good=
news to
all the nations.
We have already done =
some of
that.
VBS in a box. Xmas party at NCM.
Our outreach giving i=
n 2008
was incredible in many ways,
including how it reac=
hed to
the far corners of the earth.
In just a month, one =
of our
own,
will be going to
to visit Dr. Anil
Henry’s mission hospital there.
To be the church mean=
s we are
willing to take these kinds of risks.
To single-mindedly sh=
are the
treasure we have been given in Christ.
Even if it means goin=
g to
unexpected places or welcoming unexpected persons.
We are meeting at the=
end of
January - Sat., Jan. 31 - as a church.
Anyone who wants to t=
alk
about where we are,
where we are going, a=
nd how
we are going to get there -
is invited to come to=
a day
long planning retreat at
My hope is that God w=
ill lead
us in this retreat,
and help us discover =
the unexpected places where Christ is nee=
ded,
the unexpected persons we are called to welcome =
in the
name of Christ.
But we don’t have to wait for church progr=
ams
to carry the light of Christ to others
Every one of us, every single day has an opportu=
nity
to let our light shine.
But there is a risk to
sharing the treasure of Christ on this journey of our faith.
There was a risk 2000=
years ago
when the magi journey=
ed to
There is a risk for us
too.
There is a risk to li=
ving so
filled with God’s spirit and purpose that we let that guide our lives
rather than our fears. <=
/span>
There have always bee=
n risks
for those who have sought to know Christ.
But we can’t le=
t that
stop us. For we have a treasu=
re to
share, in this journey to
It’s a journey =
that may
lead us to unexpected places and unexpected persons –
persons whom God is c=
alling
us to welcome in the name of Christ.
Amen.