Epiphany 4 yr A cyg JSM

Can you imagine God, looking down upon St. Marks, loving and caring and wanting to continue moving us in the direction that he plans for us

It is a comforting thought to me because to recognise that that is the case, that we are not just involved in an academic exercise which dissects and analyses the bible readings, but that along with many other ways, God is a part of the service and helping us to know his will for us as the Holy Spirit helps us to hear God through the living word, the bible.

Let’s hear what the bible is saying to us today.

I see a pattern of moving. In each of the readings, God is working to move the hearers from their present place to a different place.

Isaiah has some stern words, not unusual for Isaiah but he lays it on the line to the Israelites , “Esse quam videre” to be and not to seem to be” as our school motto ran when translated from the latin.

God is upset that people engage in a token fast and demand that God hears their prayers to which they receive no response. God informs them that it is wrong to engage in religious practise and continue sinning, doing what they please, extorting their workers, arguing with each other, fighting and so on.

These are a people who have lost their way. They have been genuine in the past. But have lapsed into bad habits and are now disobeying the law.

Isaiah goes to great lengths many times to reinforce to the Israelites that it is faith which is the most important, that people should be obeying the law because it is part of their faith, not something separate which became the tragic separation of the law from the faith.

In a nutshell, God is moving his people back to faith and integrity from their present position.

Paul writes to the Corinthians and begins with humility not authority which he may well have to right to do. He tells them that it has been with fear and trembling that he addressed them rather than by powerful arguement and strong logic. Paul appears to be addressing some of the add ons, which Corinth had leaned towards, causing splintering by following Appollos or Cephas or some Paul himself.

Paul has demonstrated his skill at reasoning and use of logic in arguement. His words at the Areopagus stand in testimony to that skill so he could well have embarked on an eloquent debate. The point he was making however was that it was the simple undiluted message with which he started that the Corinthians should come back to. Christ crucified.

The Corinthians seemed impressed with powerful arguement and so their splintering. Paul is relying upon the power of the Holy Spirit. The knowledge of the Corinthians of the power of the spirit demonstrated among them already, and the power of the Spirit to work within his readers to help guide them back to the essences of their belief.

So God, through Paul is looking to move his readers back on to the straight and narrow path, to dispense with the frills and add ons which they think has enhanced their faith and come back to the simple truth of salvation through faith in Jesus death on the cross.

Jesus we hear in Matthew’s gospel is talking to his disciples immeadiately after delivering the beatitudes so he has set the scene of the kind of attitude belongs to those who are blessed by God. He goes on with two profound statements to his disciples, “you are the salt of the earth” and a little later, “You are the light of the world”.

As he elaborates on both of these statements it would seem by implication that he is warning the disciples against remaining insular in their own group and not spreading themselves and the gospel amongst the society. Also warning them against hiding their light in a way in which the world cannot see and appreciate who they are and what they are doing and in whose power they are doing it.

It may not be that they have been inadequate in these areas, Jesus may just be stressing the importance to this way of being in order that the gospel would be propagated to its best advantage by these disciples. Either way it is moving the disciples to a different place that they are at to a different place, to a higher plane of operation.

Jesus elaborates on what seems to be an unrelated matter, that of how he has come not to abolish the law, but to fulfill it.

Maybe a tad difficult to understand for his listeners at the time, but subsequent writers of the bible have no difficulty with the principle of having faith in Jesus sacrificial death and resurrection is the fulfilment which replaces the law.

It should be enhances the law in that no one is trying to say that the ten commandments are irrelevant, rather that the loving response to Jesus great love can only be to do as he would want for us to do.

I am sure that the disciples were in a different mental and emotional place after they had listened to Jesus on that day.

So again as we ponder on just where God would have us be today tomorrow and the next day and beyond, it is quite easy to understand that god’s plan for us is to move from where we are today.

Simply because life and Church life and personal relationship with God are a journey so movement has to be part of a journey.

That does not assume that we have lost the way, are on a wrong track or are in a bad place.

When we remember that of our top ten characteristics nine were equal to or above the 85^th percentile of all the Anglican churches in Australia. That alone says that we are doing something right. It also says that we are in a good place to continue moving forward, and needless to say it would make sense to keep the strong points firmly in mind as we plan the future.

When I say plan the future, I mean work with God to plan the future. The parable of the sower and the seed speaks of the partnership between God and His people. The farmer spreads the seed and God makes it germinate and grow. So it is up to us to use the benefit of hindsight and the journey God has undertaken with us so far, along with the strengths which we know we have along with much prayer and discernment as we seek God’s will for the path ahead.

One thing we can know from today’s readings, and in fact from virtually all our knowledge of the bible, is that shining our light, Shining Jesus light in the world through our worship, work and word is if you like, part of the objective of our journey and holding on to the core values, the understandings of Jesus life, death and resurrection is the underpinning of the journey.

So from todays readings, the message is that movement is natural, God is continually helping His people to move and grow. Part of that growth appears to be about shining the light of Christ in the world which comes with righteousness, i.e. faith in Jesus and living out the way of Christ. And coming deeply in prayer to seek God’s guidance in the wonderful partnership we are in with God through Jesus.

Let us pray now,

We give you thanks and praise Lord for your grace and mercy in bringing us to this day. In all we have learned and built on. We give you thanks and praise that you have built a loving family here and for the friendships, joys and happy memories we have as a result of the journey so far. Lord, we thank you even more for the journey we know lies ahead and for the plan and purpose you have in and through that journey.

So continue to guide and strengthen us and lead us that we may truly shine your light in the world and bring many people into the knowledge and love of God, through Jesus Christ our Lord, amen