Made Manifest--Holy Mystery: Sermon 1/7/2007 (Epiphany Sunday)
Pastor David Nicol
Isaiah 60:1-6 Ephesians 3:1-12 Matthew 2:1-12
Why Myrrh? Why Myrrh? Isaiah talks about Gold and Incense, but the Magi brought Myrrh… Generally, an epiphany is a sudden realization—If you remember the Peter Pan sequel “Hook” from a few years ago, the character Smee exclaims “I’ve just had an apostrophe!” with a stunned look on his face, and Hook responds, “you mean an epiphany…” In the Church, an epiphany—a sudden realization, is a moment where God’s Transcendence and Immanence become clear together: when we suddenly realize, yes, Jesus is human like the rest of us, but he’s also so much more than that! This week, in this context, I had an epiphany about the myrrh.
In the Eastern Church, the Feast of the Epiphany predated Christmas, and even today, Epiphany is far more significant in those traditions than Christmas. Over the next three weeks we will hear the three most significant Epiphany stories of the ancient Church: The 3 Magi (which we just heard), the Baptism of Jesus, and the Wedding at Cana. Each is an in-breaking of God into human experience – a moment where Jesus’ Divinity is revealed: Each is a moment where the people around Jesus realize his divinity—where the Holy Mystery of Jesus is made manifest to those around him.
That’s enough of a history lesson, I think—I asked the question, why myrrh at first—and I think honestly, the myrrh, and the cross, are the key to understanding the Magi. Most of us probably wouldn’t give a baby gold, frankincense or myrrh, but myrrh is especially odd—we might give money or savings bonds, which are our modern equivalent of gold. Some of us might give Bibles, religious items, or similar things, which are sort of like giving incense, but most of us probably wouldn’t pre-pay for a funeral for a newborn… myrrh was the ancient Jewish mixture used for embalming bodies. The Magi brought myrrh…
I know we often think about Christmas on its own—and we’re probably tempted to do the same for Epiphany, Baptism of the Lord, or the story of the Wedding at Cana—these are basically happy stories—but none of these stories means much of anything without Good Friday and Easter.
The Magi got it. They brought myrrh… Matthew makes sure not to leave out the item Isaiah does. Isaiah signals that the coming Messiah would be a King and High Priest, but the Magi go one step farther—myrrh admits that Messiah Jesus’ death would play a significant role in his ministry to the world!
Paul makes a similar theological point in Ephesians 2. Jews and Gentiles would be reconciled to one another and God “in his flesh” and “in one body …reconcil[ing] both of them to God through the cross, by which he put to death their hostility.” Jesus offers us peace, with one another, with the world, and with God. Through the Cross-, Jesus has offered new life to the world.
We as Christians have been given the responsibility of sharing this gift of peace to the world around us. God came to be with us in the holy mystery that is the incarnation. God continues to come among us in the Holy Mystery that is Holy Communion. God offers grace to us, demonstrating overwhelming, unconditional love by giving his life for us on the Cross. Because Jesus was far more than just a baby, because Jesus was God come in the Flesh, his death and resurrection are far more than just the death and miraculous resurrection of any average person. God loves us so much, and wants to overcome our separation from God and one another, that Jesus Christ died, suffering separation from the Father and the Holy Spirit so that we might be in full and right relationship with God: Father, Son and Holy Spirit! As the Body of Christ, we have been called to stand as a temple to the Lord, built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, with Christ Jesus himself as the chief cornerstone.
The apostolic faith of the Church refuses to allow differences among Christians based on who we used to be, recognizing that the only important distinction for us to make is between those of us who have been called to live new and holy lives, serving as Christ’s Body at work in the world, and those we are called to serve and to invite to join us in Christ’s body. The prophetic message is that we are to turn upside down our usual social understandings—empowering the powerless, feeding the hungry, healing the sick, and bringing down the powerful. Christ Jesus’ message goes even farther—God loves us enough to die for us—so we should love one another and our neighbors as we love ourselves!
The Magi came bringing gifts—not because they were told how much the Church budget would be, or because they knew that with gold and incense Jesus could make sure the light bill got paid, or even to pay for staff and food at the local soup kitchen in Bethlehem. No, the Magi brought gifts as an act of praise and thanksgiving for God’s willingness to come among us as a human being. The Magi gave of their wealth, but also sacrificed months of their lives in arduous travel to encounter the King of kings, the Great High Priest, and the Lamb of God born in Bethlehem.
The Magi refocused their lives because they realized the Messiah was coming. The Messiah has come—We need to refocus our lives as well. The Magi brought myrrh to help prepare the Lamb of God for burial—to show the significance of God’s willingness to come among us and die for us, so we might be at one with God. As Christians, we need to be willing to confess that God was made manifest in the person of Jesus Christ—that God became one of us, so that we might become more like God through God’s death and resurrection. We need to be willing to embrace the healing power of the cross, not shying away from the birth, death or resurrection of God in Jesus Christ because we don’t understand it. We need to learn to accept mystery, embrace God’s gift to us, and respond in praise and thanksgiving, as holy and living sacrifices in union with Christ’s offering for us. The Magi brought myrrh—thanks be to God that God loved us enough to use their offering of praise and thanksgiving. Amen.
Isaiah 60:1-6 Ephesians 3:1-12 Matthew 2:1-12
Why Myrrh? Why Myrrh? Isaiah talks about Gold and Incense, but the Magi brought Myrrh… Generally, an epiphany is a sudden realization—If you remember the Peter Pan sequel “Hook” from a few years ago, the character Smee exclaims “I’ve just had an apostrophe!” with a stunned look on his face, and Hook responds, “you mean an epiphany…” In the Church, an epiphany—a sudden realization, is a moment where God’s Transcendence and Immanence become clear together: when we suddenly realize, yes, Jesus is human like the rest of us, but he’s also so much more than that! This week, in this context, I had an epiphany about the myrrh.
In the Eastern Church, the Feast of the Epiphany predated Christmas, and even today, Epiphany is far more significant in those traditions than Christmas. Over the next three weeks we will hear the three most significant Epiphany stories of the ancient Church: The 3 Magi (which we just heard), the Baptism of Jesus, and the Wedding at Cana. Each is an in-breaking of God into human experience – a moment where Jesus’ Divinity is revealed: Each is a moment where the people around Jesus realize his divinity—where the Holy Mystery of Jesus is made manifest to those around him.
That’s enough of a history lesson, I think—I asked the question, why myrrh at first—and I think honestly, the myrrh, and the cross, are the key to understanding the Magi. Most of us probably wouldn’t give a baby gold, frankincense or myrrh, but myrrh is especially odd—we might give money or savings bonds, which are our modern equivalent of gold. Some of us might give Bibles, religious items, or similar things, which are sort of like giving incense, but most of us probably wouldn’t pre-pay for a funeral for a newborn… myrrh was the ancient Jewish mixture used for embalming bodies. The Magi brought myrrh…
I know we often think about Christmas on its own—and we’re probably tempted to do the same for Epiphany, Baptism of the Lord, or the story of the Wedding at Cana—these are basically happy stories—but none of these stories means much of anything without Good Friday and Easter.
The Magi got it. They brought myrrh… Matthew makes sure not to leave out the item Isaiah does. Isaiah signals that the coming Messiah would be a King and High Priest, but the Magi go one step farther—myrrh admits that Messiah Jesus’ death would play a significant role in his ministry to the world!
Paul makes a similar theological point in Ephesians 2. Jews and Gentiles would be reconciled to one another and God “in his flesh” and “in one body …reconcil[ing] both of them to God through the cross, by which he put to death their hostility.” Jesus offers us peace, with one another, with the world, and with God. Through the Cross-, Jesus has offered new life to the world.
We as Christians have been given the responsibility of sharing this gift of peace to the world around us. God came to be with us in the holy mystery that is the incarnation. God continues to come among us in the Holy Mystery that is Holy Communion. God offers grace to us, demonstrating overwhelming, unconditional love by giving his life for us on the Cross. Because Jesus was far more than just a baby, because Jesus was God come in the Flesh, his death and resurrection are far more than just the death and miraculous resurrection of any average person. God loves us so much, and wants to overcome our separation from God and one another, that Jesus Christ died, suffering separation from the Father and the Holy Spirit so that we might be in full and right relationship with God: Father, Son and Holy Spirit! As the Body of Christ, we have been called to stand as a temple to the Lord, built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, with Christ Jesus himself as the chief cornerstone.
The apostolic faith of the Church refuses to allow differences among Christians based on who we used to be, recognizing that the only important distinction for us to make is between those of us who have been called to live new and holy lives, serving as Christ’s Body at work in the world, and those we are called to serve and to invite to join us in Christ’s body. The prophetic message is that we are to turn upside down our usual social understandings—empowering the powerless, feeding the hungry, healing the sick, and bringing down the powerful. Christ Jesus’ message goes even farther—God loves us enough to die for us—so we should love one another and our neighbors as we love ourselves!
The Magi came bringing gifts—not because they were told how much the Church budget would be, or because they knew that with gold and incense Jesus could make sure the light bill got paid, or even to pay for staff and food at the local soup kitchen in Bethlehem. No, the Magi brought gifts as an act of praise and thanksgiving for God’s willingness to come among us as a human being. The Magi gave of their wealth, but also sacrificed months of their lives in arduous travel to encounter the King of kings, the Great High Priest, and the Lamb of God born in Bethlehem.
The Magi refocused their lives because they realized the Messiah was coming. The Messiah has come—We need to refocus our lives as well. The Magi brought myrrh to help prepare the Lamb of God for burial—to show the significance of God’s willingness to come among us and die for us, so we might be at one with God. As Christians, we need to be willing to confess that God was made manifest in the person of Jesus Christ—that God became one of us, so that we might become more like God through God’s death and resurrection. We need to be willing to embrace the healing power of the cross, not shying away from the birth, death or resurrection of God in Jesus Christ because we don’t understand it. We need to learn to accept mystery, embrace God’s gift to us, and respond in praise and thanksgiving, as holy and living sacrifices in union with Christ’s offering for us. The Magi brought myrrh—thanks be to God that God loved us enough to use their offering of praise and thanksgiving. Amen.
posted by Rev. David Nicol at 11:00 AM
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