The Kings are Coming! The Kings are Coming!
Text: Matthew
2:1-12
Aldersgate
Theme Conversation:
Hold up a large flashlight, and
turn it on and off several times.
Ask the children to describe the good things that a flashlight can
do.
·
show
you the way along a dark path
·
keep
you from stumbling and falling when you are walking at night
·
help you
to feel safe when the power in your house has gone out.
Explain that the people of
God sent some good news through Isaiah; he said, “Arise, shine;
for your light has come …. the Lord will arise upon
you, and his glory will appear over you” (60:1-2).
Jesus was the light of God that came into the world, and he was
like a flashlight from God to help the people find their way in a dark
time. Then turn on your light, and
point out another great thing about light — it attracts people.
If you are lost in the woods at night, and someone turns on a
flashlight, you will naturally walk toward it.
The very same is true for Jesus,
and Isaiah says that “Nations shall come to your light, and kings to the
brightness of your dawn” (v. 3).
The light of Jesus is still burning brightly, and he can attract
us to himself and show us the way through the darkness.
I.
Call to
Celebrate!
a.
Not about Chicken Little’s
dire prediction
i.
The sky is
falling! The sky is falling!
ii.
This day is a
celebration
b.
Not about Paul Revere’s
announcement to the people of
i.
The British are Coming! The British
are Coming!
ii.
These kings come
in peace.
c.
About the celebration that this baby is Lord of all
i.
Acknowledgement
of the unusual quality of this scenario
1.
heathen, Gentile leaders
2.
go in search of a baby born to a people that were
foreign to them
3.
especially important message in this world
a.
of ethnic cleansing
b.
judging others on the basis of race or class
ii.
“Part of the
mystery of Epiphany is the mysterious inclusion of Gentiles among God’s
people.”
iii.
No one, no, not
even you, no one is excluded from the saving grace of this child
II.
Yet, this
successful search of the kings was not an accident
a.
the magoi were looking for
God
i.
Greek suggests
four descriptive words
1.
Wise
2.
Priestly
3.
Sages
4.
Astrologers
ii.
Actions
distinguish them as sincere and persistent
1.
Do not stumble onto the Messiah,
2.
make a diligent search
3.
They search with purpose
4.
Come prepared, knowing what to do when they arrive
b.
Furthermore, they are directed each step of way by
divine hand
i.
God is leading
them
ii.
They are open to
that leadership
iii.
even though
Jews, the people of God, considered them godless, God knew better
c.
Are we willing to undertake this same kind of search?
i.
All that it
takes is the willingness to look
ii.
Where would we
look?
1.
makes sense that one would start in
a.
looking for one that would rule in the line of David
b.
2.
Yet the magoi find only
Herod in this traditional seat of power
3.
4.
God expects his leaders to care for the people they
are leading
a.
the least of these
b.
those who have no power
5.
So instead the magoi find
this new king in
a.
the original seat of King David
b.
near
6.
in this city they find one who will shepherd, one who
will rule in a different way
a.
word visually depicts what shepherds do
i.
tend
ii.
protect
iii.
guide
iv.
nurture
b.
Jesus offers
i.
Gentle
guardianship
ii.
Compassionate
care
d.
Instead of being focused on
i.
not able to
watch as much of burial of Ford as I would have liked
ii.
yet, aware that
he prepared instruction for his funeral
1.
each step meant something
2.
especially those that marked a change
3.
What did it mean for Ford to not choose the usual
rider-less horse?
iii.
Perhaps,
III.
Today’s
reading from Isaiah offers an image of a restored
a.
part of a much larger theme that runs
throughout the book of Isaiah, namely the hope that
b.
Passage begins with beautiful visual
image
i.
Especially
for those who have seen the city of
1.
from the vantage point of the
2.
sitting on this hill, looking west toward
the city, as the eastern light tops the mountain from behind you and strikes
the eastern walls of the city,
a.
it can look as if the city is both rising
up from the shadows,
b.
and shining with its own internal radiance.
3.
The white limestone walls reflect the
light and glow in a bright white golden sheen that has been the subject of
innumerable photographs.
ii.
It
is a beautiful sight, but also one that is highly symbolic for the ancient
Israelites.
1.
What could be more inspiring to
post-exilic
2.
All the rest of the world and its nations
may remain in darkness, but
c.
What does
i.
For the
ancients,
ii.
For us, the same
but not in a geographical place
iii.
When we come
looking for the baby, searching with the magoi, we
are looking for the home of God
1.
we are exiled, we wander from God
a.
exiles remain far from God either because
i.
something keeps
them from returning
ii.
or someone is
holding them back or standing in the way
iii.
or because they
have lost the will/desire to go home
b.
God wants us to come home
i.
To intentionally
take those steps
ii.
To know that our
home is with God
d.
Our light referred to in Isaiah is both God and the
ways in which God is reflected to the world through our lives
i.
God’s coming,
through the birth of Jesus Christ directly transforms our circumstances.
ii.
Isaiah invites
us to stand up and be recognized, be seen by the rest of the world
iii.
our Epiphany
role is to make manifest for the world, our world, God’s glory, God’s light
e.
Incarnation/intrusion of God into our world restores
our world to the ways of God
i.
The Coming of
God into the world is often understood as the coming of a brilliant light.
1.
we have the ability to see that light
2.
“That light, the gift of God, caries with it the
power to transform …
ii.
The kings are
coming! The kings are coming!
1.
we are those kings this day, had thought about having
the magoi lead us to communion
2.
may we open ourselves to God’s light as we come to
receive the gift of Holy Communion this day