Sermons by The ReverendGrayhameBowcott:
“The Change that God Leads Us To”
The Epiphany of the Lord – December31st, 2018
St. George’s, The Blue Mountains
Matthew 2.1-12
The Visit of the Wise Men
2In the time of King Herod, after Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea, wise men from the East came to Jerusalem, 2asking, ‘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.’ 3When King Herod heard this, he was frightened, and all Jerusalem with him; 4and calling together all the chief priests and scribes of the people, he inquired of them where the Messiah was to be born. 5They told him, ‘In Bethlehem of Judea; for so it has been written by the prophet:
6 “And you, Bethlehem, in the land ofJudah,
are by no means least among the rulers of Judah;
for from you shall come a ruler
who is to shepherd my peopleIsrael.” ’
7Then Herod secretly called for the wise men and learned from them the exact time when the star had appeared. 8Then 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.’ 9When 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. 10When they saw that the star had stopped, they were overwhelmed with joy. 11On 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. 12And having been warned in a dream not to return to Herod, they left for their own country by another road.
The Lord be with you.
May the words of my mouth
and the meditations of all our hearts
be always acceptable in your sight, O Lord,
our hope and our salvation.
Amen.
This year and Christmas was a very different year and Christmas for my family and I. The reason for this being that it was this year that my Grandmother Dorothy Bowcott passed away, and this change in our family brought many more changes.
Changes like new configurations of who comes together for Christmas.
The physical change of a new address for where Christmas would be held.
And, of course, there have been changes in my own family. Now we have two little ones to drive us bonkers on a Christmas road trip.
But that largest change for me this year, was the sense of displacement at having, in one way, lost my “home for Christmas.”
For years I have driven a similar route back to the place I still kind of think of as my hometown, Lakefield, Ontario (north of Peterborough).
There are particular sights and landmarks that I have come to affectionately look for along the way that affirm, each year, that I am coming closer to the place where family has gathered for years.
But not so, this year with my family.
Things were different.
There was a new destination that God was leading us to.
This year, after snow storms and shovelling, our family gathered in Innerkipp, Ontario (outside of Woodstock).
I didn’t have any of the familiar landmarks to guide me there.
Just my faith in my GPS, and my ability to stay within the snow ruts (in the right hand lane) on the roads and highways when the blowing snow washed away our visibility.
And the driving was very bad this year with moments when I regretted taking my family out into the cold, miserable weather.
Up until this Christmas, there has always been, for me, a certain sense of satisfaction, seeing familiar sights and knowing that family and home were getting closer.
And there has always been a particular feeling of relief and joy when we finally arrived.A feeling of contentment when you reach your destination.
A feeling of completion even?
Perhaps some of you can relate to this?
Perhaps you even have somewhere (other than the Blue Mountains) that still feels like home to you – a place that calls to you?
Saint Matthew’s Gospel is the only one of the four that tells the story of the three Magi (“magoi” in Greek).
The three travellers who journey half way across the known world to see Jesus when he is born.
We really don’t know that much about these strange men, other than they were literate, political officials from the courts of countries perhaps of Parthia, Armenia or regions east of Judea. The gifts they bring to Jesus were likely offerings from other Kings (evidencing the political tensions between King Herod of Israel – who was despised both by his own people and by the rulers of other countries) and the hope of a possible new ruler for Israel – the prophesied child born under the great star.
These strange travellers were using an interesting combination of faith and science to guide them on their way. Faith, because the prophecies which led them there were old prophecies from the Hebrew scriptures. Science, because they were star gazers, astronomers, and were able to patiently wait for, identify and follow the “star of prophecy” when it appeared.
Where I had my GPS this year, thousands of years ago, these travellers had the night sky and a sign – a peculiar star that had risen from the east.
Like me, they weren’t quite sure where they were going and they had none of the familiar landmarks to show them the way.
Like me, they placed their trust in something other than themselves to guide them along the way.
I wonder, when they reached the modest place of Jesus’ birth,
I wonder if they felt the same sense of contentment, joy and satisfaction that I have often felt after a long journey?The feeling that divine powers have brought you safely to where you need to be in life?
The placement of this story in the life of the Church is always a timely one as it happens each year somewhere around New Years – a time when most people reflect on the previous year’s events and begin to dream and wonder as to what the next year will bring them.
I often wonder, when new year’s resolutions are made, and goals and dreams are being set, I often wonder how many people consider the role of God in their plans?
Where is God’s place in the dreams that we set for ourselves and the changes that we hope to see in the future?
In this story, God is the catalyst of prophetic change, God is the guide to lead the characters to their destination, and God is even the ending point (the object of the journey who is then adored as the Baby Christ).
But, I suspect that God is often left out of the narrative of many new year’s resolutions and dreams of changes and prosperity.
Perhaps this is the message that we are invited to hear this morning?
The promise that God is, in fact, very much a part of our lives and our stories?
As we think to the new year, perhaps we should be reflecting on where God is calling us or leading us to?
What sort of positive change might God intend for us?
Or even, what is God calling us to commit to differently this year?
Allow me to close but putting the question to you this way:
What is the change that God is leading us to this year?
Now, you may have guessed it already, but today’s sermon is not a “answer all the questions of the universe” homily.
But rather a “I hadn’t been thinking about that” type of reflection.
Yet even in this style of sermon, there are some constants that are guiding me along the way:
1)First, that I believe beyond a doubt, that God is part of each of our narratives.
2)Second, that I do believe that God desires positive change for each of us, often this change begins and ends with us being in a closer relationship with him.
3)Thirdly, wherever this next year takes us, I think that we are right to place our trust in God to help get us there.
4)And lastly, there is, at least for me, a deep sense of hope that when we finally arrive to the place that God is calling us to be, that there is deep joy and contentment when we get there.
And in closing may I say: Happy and blessed travels to each of you in this new year. Many you continue to feel God’s presence with you along the way, and may we celebrate the journey together in our unique family of faith that we call St. George’s.
This I pray in the name of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit. Amen.