Another Way

Readings:
Isaiah 60:1-6
Ephesians 3:1-12
Matthew 2:1-12

Audio sermon link: http://fileresource.sitepro.com/filemanager/74/filecollections/422/55C2966E-8F65-C873-1A07-FDF5C25E6D6F.mp3


Pastor Johnson weaves the "wacky story of three wise men and a baby king". This baby is not a king anyway anyone has ever understood a king. The background is one of intrigue.

So it pays to consider how we respond to intrigue.

Herod live s life in the folly of thinking he is in total control, a delusion of control that brings him to try to kill the king. He is driven by self-centeredness and a lack of respect. James Taylor sings a Christmas carol I enjoy listening to each year. In it, he writes of Herod:

"Avoid a royal welcome,
Avoid a big to-do;
A king that will slaughter the innocents
Will not cut a deal for you”

The truth in the story lies in the response of the three wise men. They are drawn to the radiance in the manger; they kneel and pay homage. Their key lies in developing the eyes of the heart, ones spoken by Antoine de Saint Exupery’s Little Prince:



Kings are supposed to give the powerful even more power. The word on the streets is that THIS King is a king of justice and mercy. He will lift up the lonely and powerless and turn over the status quo. And this king comes as an infant. An infant who will become priest and prophet.

The gifts the visitors bring portend the future of this baby’s life; gold for the king, frankincense for a priest, myrrh for a prophet who will be martyred on a cross.

And what do the wise men say upon arriving. Sorry, wrong house?

No, quite the contrary. They are struck by the radiance of the child and hit their knees. I have heard Pastor Johnson tell the story about how Hannah, his daughter, was born on Epiphany. I never tire of a father telling of the radiance he sees in the eyes of his child. I remember Pastor Johnson visiting our family when my youngest child, Lorin, was born. How he held him in his arms and smiled. I will never forget that sight. That from the throne of a bassinet, in a baby’s face is all the hope … for a new family. In that bright, shiny moment is a feeling of hopefulness for the future.

Our message today from the scripture: be careful who you make king in your life. Almost always, prophets are crusty; they mix with lepers and tax collectors. We would be served well to develop the eyes of the wise men. To see the radiance in the crib, to view in this light a different nature – one that tells you you are standing in a special moment. And it would do well to remember that these special moments are often wrapped in ordinary places – your kitchen, your driveway, your classroom.

The grace of God is where that radiant light has entered your life – a hug or a touch, a moment of forgiveness. When you see this light, you are in the presence of Christ, you are beneath the star peering into the manger, into the radiance of that bay’s face.

This light is portable. You can take it with you. And it can change a life. Let us be ever so thankful there are moments of great light.

And, as the lyrics to James Taylor’s Christmas carol remind me as I drive around town on a starry evening:

“They tell me this life is a miracle
And I figure that they’re right.
But Herod’s always out there
He’s got our card on file;
It’s a lead pipe cinch, if we give an inch,
That Herod’s gonna take a mile.
So maybe me and you could be wise guys too
And go home by another way”

That other way is the way lit with that portable light. And you can take it with you.

We can open our eyes to that moment of great light … take it with us, and go home by another way.